For better, Or For Worse?
by WildSpiritCat
Summary: Emma Gold was a normal girl, until the day the Legendary Pokémon Arceus saved the world yet again from a meteor. She helped save him and in return, he granted her The Jewel of Hope to make her wish come true. But now she's pursued by a man named Alexander Cross, his Darkrai, and Team Darkness in hopes of stealing it and destroying every Pokémon, normal or Legendary, in existence.
1. Chapter 1

**Hello! This is my first Pokémon story so things may or may not be right the first time. But I shall try my best! Of course, I own NOTHING. There's no copyright intended in this story. Enjoy! ^^**

Emma slowly opened her eyes to the feeling of something wet on her cheek. She giggled and sat up, her Umbreon running around her on the bed, periodically licking her cheek just to get her up. "Good morning Umbreon." she murmured and scratched him on the side of the head.

The Pokémon jumped onto the floor and she stood up, stretching while yawning. She watched him run out of her bedroom and down the hall. She had other Pokémon, but they usually caused her to be a bully target. Her Pokémon were: Luxray, Lucario, Cofagrigus, Zoroark, Umbreon, Weavile, and Absol.

All because they were mostly Dark-types. Lucario was the only Fighting-type she had and Luxray was the only Electric-type. Not many of the kids in the school she went to had Dark-types. OR Ghost-types. Sure there was a Drifloon, Misdreavus, or a Murkrow and Houndour here and there but most of the Pokémon allowed in the school were small ones that were Grass, Bug, Normal, Water, Flying, or Psychic.

She never understood the school policies.

They didn't allow bigger Pokémon in the vicinity. But it didn't stop her. She loved being around her Pokémon. They were what they were and she was proud of it! She didn't pamper them; she didn't battle them when anyone asked because she thought it was wrong.

Emma hated the thought of people just USING Pokémon. It was so...selfish! And she didn't keep her Pokémon in their Pokéballs. Sure they had their own but she let them out whenever she could. You try being cramped in a ball the size of a baseball.

"Emma? Are you up sweetheart?" a voice called out. She opened her closet and looked over her shoulder. "Yeah mom, I'm up! Is my bag down there?"

"Yes it is."

"Okay, just checking." She picked through her clothes, which weren't one color or one subject. People thought she was Goth because she wore black but to tell the truth, she would wear any color. Her favorite color in fact was lavender purple and a berri shade of pink.

Getting the clothes she liked out, she walked up to the bedroom door, shut it, and took her pajamas off. Putting her underwear on, she pulled the black leggings on, putting on the purple and white plaid skirt on afterward.

After putting her bra on, she slipped on a black spaghetti strapped shirt, putting on a white vest with fur on the collar afterward. She struggled to get her socks on since she woke up late and school would be starting in ten minutes.

The run to school would take about seven to eight minutes. "Mom, where're my shoes?" she called out, brushing her dark brown hair out of her eyes. The girl grabbed a yellow hair tie and put her hair up into an almost neat ponytail.

"Down here next to Cofagrigus." her mother replied.

Grabbing her math book on the counter next to her bed, she zoomed out of her room, down the hallway, and thudded down the stairs. Cofagrigus grabbed her shoes and handed them to her. "Thanks Cofagrigus." Emma smiled and nodded a thanks, taking them from him.

Absol watched her get her shoes on as she hopped around on one foot, getting them on. She'll tie them when she's eating breakfast. Her mother smiled as she rushed into the kitchen and grabbed a pack of chocolate Pop-Tarts.

Opening it, she pulled one out and bit down on it as she sat down, tying her shoelaces. Mornings were always like this. "Why don't you go to bed earlier Emma? You need the sleep!"

"I know I know!" she murmured through chews, crumbs falling out. "But I had a test to study for this time!"

"And the other times?"

She was silent and she chuckled in amusement, handing her her bag as she stood up. "Thanks mom." The woman nodded and placed her hand on the back of her head, pulling her into a kiss on the forehead. "Have a good day at school."

"I'll try." she smiled and turned, walking into the short hallway, and opened the door. "Okay everybody! School! C'mon, get up and let's get going!" Her Pokémon stood up and walked out the door.

"Have fun on your run!" her mother smiled. She smirked and saluted her before closing the door. She walked up to the window and watched them all run down the dirt road. 'That girl really knows how to put on her clothes.'

Opening the window, she poked her head out. "Honey, pull up your sock!"

"What?!" came the shout of surprise and watched her hop backwards as she pulled her sock up and then turned, running after her Pokémon. She chuckled and closed the window, walking away.

* * *

A nice gentle wind blew her hair around as she ran side by side Zoroark. They did this every morning. But not as much during the winter. They all had some way of running. Luxray, Umbreon, and Absol were usually at the front, Cofagrigus running on his hands behind them, followed by Lucario and Weavile, then her and Zoroark at the back.

Emma stored the last Pop-Tart in her bag for a snack during recess. I guess you could call it recess. There were no things to play on for the students but there were some things for the Pokémon to play on while their owners played sports.

She didn't particularly care for sports. She would play them if she was bored enough though but she didn't because they were just so hard to follow sometimes. But she was healthy and fit! And that worked for her! Hell, she didn't really need to run to school. She could just ride her electric scooter there and it'd take five minutes. Maybe less.

Grass-type Pokémon ran around along beside the dirt road, enjoying the sun that was out.

She spotted a few Normal-types here and there but most of them were Grass. An Aipom jumped from branch to branch by them and jumped out, landing beside them. "Aipom!" it greeted happily, smiling. Emma breathed quietly at a normal pace and glanced down at it. "Good morning Aipom. How're you doing?"

"Ai! Aipom!" it replied, running beside her. Zoroark didn't mind it running by his feet. "Well I can't talk now little buddy! I gotta go to school but I promise I'll play when we get back!" Aipom nodded and ran off, jumping into the trees.

Once they reached school, she frowned as she held the Pokéballs out. "I'm sorry guys. But while school's going on, you gotta be up. That's the policy for every student owned Pokémon. But I'll take you all out during the break."

They were engulfed by a bright red flashed and disappeared into each of their respective Pokéballs. She set them in her bag in an open and spacey spot and walked up the gravel road. Students walked past her, having little conversations with their friends.

The girl grunted slightly when someone walked past her, ramming her shoulder against hers on purpose. A blonde girl turned and sneered at her. "Watch it Goth girl!"

"Excuse me Ellie but I ran into no one." Emma growled. A red head walked up to Ellie and rolled her eyes, placing a hand on her hip, smirking. "Sure you did, freak." They giggled and walked away and she herself rolled her eyes. Today was going to be a long day.

* * *

Emma stared out the window, listening halfway to the lesson being taught. There were normal classes (like math, English, history, science, etc...) and then the extra class that dealt with Pokémon. She took the class that taught about health and what not. It was like what would be taught to a Pokémon Nurse.

That was what she was aiming to be in the future.

Turning her head when she heard something hit her desk, she looked down and picked up the crumpled up paper and opened it. _"You okay Emms?"_ it read. She rolled her eyes at the nickname her friend called her.

Picking up her pencil, Emma scribbled a measly one word down. _"Yeah."_ She then crumpled it up and tossed it gently to the desk beside her. A boy opened it and snorted slightly at the response and leaned towards her. "What's wrong Emms? You look depressed."

"I'm fine Jimmy. I'm just...bored."

"Emma? YOU? Bored?! Ugh, are you sick?! Oh God help us!"

She smirked at his remarks, knowing he was trying to cheer her up. "I'll call the doctor and the nurse and the ambalamps! We need to get you into the E.R. STAT!" Jimmy went on quietly. Some of the kids around them stared at them.

"Jimmy?" the teacher asked. He jumped and tensed up. "Y-yes sir?"

"Do you mind if you solve this problem and explain what you did to get the result?"

The kids giggled in amusement as he slowly stood up and walked up to the blackboard, taking the chalk. He wasn't paying enough attention to understand this problem. "Well...well y-you...you um...first..." Emma face palmed herself in amusement and watched him struggle to even figure out the first step.

"Jimmy?" the teacher asked, leaning against his desk as he smirked.

"Y-yes?"

"Have a seat."

"Y-ye-yes sir." Lowering his head, they laughed slightly as he sat silently back down and she punched his arm gently. "Now I'm better."

"Well if my misery helps out, I deserve some credit too because that SUCKED!"

* * *

"H-hold on guys! Wait a-GYAH!" Emma screamed as she was tackled to the ground, Umbreon, Absol, and Luxray all up in her face, licking her cheeks, happy to see her. Zoroark walked up to her and held his hand out, smiling. She took it and he gently pulled her up.

"Thank you Zoroark." she chuckled and sat down on the bench. The kids were playing all kinds of sports, going from Volleyball to Soccer. Jimmy was sitting far from her, playing on the laptop he had. A Metang floated next to him, watching him play.

She got out the rest of the Pop-Tart and took a bite, chewing silently. She watched the small Pokémon run around, playing a game of tag. Reaching into her bag, she pulled out a big Poffin case and opened it up, pulling out a red Poffin. "Here Weavile."

Weavile looked at her just in time and caught the red Poffin at the last second before it hit his forehead and he nodded a thank you, taking a bite. Umbreon ran around in small circles as she pulled another one out and when she tossed it high into the air, he went after it, biting down on the whole thing.

Out the corner of her eye, she noticed Ellie walk up to her, Glameow on her shoulder. "Hey Emma."

"What do you want?"

"I was just wondering something. Why do you have only boy Pokémon? Do you hate girl Pokémon?"

The girl cocked an eyebrow and she crossed one leg over her other. "What's that supposed to mean?" Ellie shuffled awkwardly and placed her hands behind her back. "Well, you have only boys and no girls. How're they supposed to breed? Boys can't breed with boys! Not to mention the outcome will be ugly as fuck." She whispered the last sentence, but Emma didn't seem to hear it right.

"What was that last sentence?"

"Nothing!"

Emma sighed and smiled. "I don't mind their genders. I love Pokémon of all genders and types. Especially Fairy-types. They're just so cute! Besides, my dad got these guys for me when I was little." The blonde girl rolled her eyes as she went on, mentally groaning. "And I don't really care for breeding. Breeding is just another forceful way to get a new kind of Pokémon and it's...selfish! I say just let nature take its course for them."

"And what about your OWN choice of Pokémon? You have a Lucario and Luxray and they're the only normal ones on your team!"

Lucario's fur fluffed up in annoyance and he growled. The others seemed to be annoyed by this remark too. "I mean, COME ON! Only Emos and Goths have mainly Dark and Ghost-type Pokémon! I mean, look at how ugly THIS one is!"

Cofagrigus looked at her in surprise when she pointed her thumb at him and sneered. "It's ugly, pathetic, and eats people. And your other Pokémon are also ugly and pathetic." Emma sighed and placed a hand on his side and one on Absol's head, smiling up at her. "Like I said, I love Pokémon of all types, no matter what they look like. Outer beauty has no affect on its feelings. Normal OR legendary. It's like...Darkrai for example. It's a Dark Legendary Pokémon and people fear it for what it does and how it looks. But do any of them really know it for what it is on the inside?"

"Uh, yeah. It's a fucking ugly Pokémon that makes nightmares. You should have normal and pretty Pokémon and be a normal girl for once Emma. No wonder you only have Jimmy as a friend." Ellie pouted sarcastically and Glameow lifted her head up as she walked away.

Her eyes stayed wide and she just stared at her, at a loss for words. Umbreon's ears lowered and he put his head in her hand, getting her to snap out of it. "Umbre...?" The girl frowned but then smiled, petting his head gently. "I'm fine Umbreon. You don't need to worry about me."

She then clapped her hands together and looked at them. "Now, let's get the rest of you fed before the break ends!"

* * *

"Ai! Aipom!" Aipom cheered in delight as it was swung gently around by her hand with its tail. Emma giggled as they walked down the dirt road, swinging it around gently. Its grip on her hand was gentle but strong enough to hold itself there.

A Beautifly flew around her, followed by a Kricketot running after it. "Hello Beautifly, Kricketot!"

"Beautifly!"

"Kricke!"

They disappeared in a bush by them and she watched it shake before standing still. The afternoon was alive with Pokémon by the time she came home. She let her Pokémon go ahead and that left her alone before Aipom arrived.

She heard a buzzing sound and turned, stopping suddenly before she ran into a Beedrill. It just flew there, staring intently at her. "Beedrill..." Reaching into her bag, she took the Poffin case and opened it up, pulling out a slightly bigger yellow Poffin.

She held it up to it and smiled. "Just the way you like it." It flew up to it, sniffed it, and smiled. "Bee!" It took it in its drills and flew away into the forest. Aipom tugged on her arm slightly and smiled, pointing into the woods. "Aipom!"

"I don't know little buddy. I have homework to do and..." Emma murmured. She stopped when it gave her puppy eyes and she smirked, making a 'hmph', and let it go. "Lead the way." It grinned wide in happiness and ran into the woods, her following at a fast pace.

Cherrims' sat on tree branches, singing a soft melody of just their name. A Turtwig looked out from behind a tree as they passed and trotted after them. Followed by a Snivy. "Eevee?" an Eevee questioned, poking her head out from a bush.

"Aipom!" Aipom shouted out loud. She smiled and nodded. "Eevee! Eev!" Emma laughed as she looked around, seeing all of the Bug, Grass, and Normal-type following them. Some were even Psychic. "How many friends are you inviting?"

"Ai!"

Starly and its evolutions flew above her, all calling out their names from time to time. It just made her smile. These were all her friends. They soon halted in a clearing and her eyes widened at what she saw. A large lake was in front of them, reflecting everything so clearly.

The sun shining down on it made the water sparkle.

"Aipom!" the long tail Pokémon cheered and jumped into the water. The other Pokémon cheered out as well and ran in all directions, having a fun time fairly quick. Emma sat down on the smooth grass and picked an Eevee up, setting her in her lap.

Eevee smiled as she scratched her head gently, her fingernails like heaven. Pokémon swam around, some being Water-types. Other Pokémon surrounded her, enjoying the warmth her body gave off. She loved this place. She could stay here forever if she wanted to.

* * *

"How was school Emma?" Emma's mother asked, watching as she poked at her potatoes. Emma glanced up at her, uttering a 'huh' and looked back down at her dinner. "Yeah I guess..."

"What?"

"School was okay. Nothing really fun happened."

She furrowed her eyebrows slightly and sighed, closing her eyes. "Would you like to talk about it?" She shook her head and sat back. "Nah, I'm fine." She flinched when her hand grabbed hers and gave a gentle squeeze. "Emma, you don't have to keep everything locked away. You can tell me anything! Are those kids not leaving you alone?"

"No...they're not. No matter what I do, they don't stop. I don't see what's so bad about my Pokémon."

She pushed her plate away and stood up. "I'm not hungry. I'm gonna go out for a walk." Her mother gave her a concerned look and nodded slowly, watching her walk out of the kitchen. Lucario curiously watched Emma walk out the front door and Weavile lifted his head up. _"What's up with her?"_

"_I'm not sure. Emma didn't seem to look fine."_ he replied. _"Must be tired."_

* * *

Emma silently walked through the woods, the same Aipom at her side. "Aipom?" it questioned, tugging on her hand gently with its tail. She pulled her hand away and looked down at it. "I'm fine Aipom. The night air was what I needed."

It frowned slightly and she smiled, looking up at the night sky. "Just look at the beautiful sky. The stars make everything pretty." Her eyes widened when she saw shooting stars shoot across the night sky and she grinned, stopping. "I can't believe I'm seeing so many shooting stars! Make a wish Aipom!"

Aipom tilted its head at the request and just stared at her as she closed her eyes and grew silent. A few seconds passed and she opened her eyes, looking down at it. "There. I made my wish. Hopefully some day, it'll come true."

They continued walking and she just stared up at the night sky. The shooting stars didn't stop and now she was growing a little confused. What was making all of these shooting stars appear? Aipom tensed up when he heard the quick sudden rustle of its fellow Pokémon and looked behind it at the sky, its eyes widening. "AI!"

"Aipom? Where're you going?!" Emma shouted as it bolted away as fast as it could. She jumped when a long trail of Beautifly flew past her face and away into the sky. Tons more Pokémon fled the area and she looked around in a panic, concerned. Noticing something very big and bright in the sky, she slowly looked at it and her jaw dropped in fright.

A huge meteor was hurtling right towards them!

Taking quick steps back, she saw that pieces of the meteor were breaking away and soared towards them, creating the illusion of shooting stars. Pokémon cried out in fright as the chunks crashed into the ground and she screamed, tripping on her own heel. A Ponyta jumped high over her and continued running and she didn't waste any time just sitting there.

The girl shot up and sprinted after the hoards of Pokémon in front of her. And boy were they frightened. More chunks crashed near them. Dust flew up and smoke arose around her, engulfing everything.

More chunks broke off as the smoke and dust cleared out as soon as it appeared and she looked behind her shoulder, seeing that the meteor was getting closer and closer. And almost in the blink of an eye, a strange light shot out of the night sky, what looked like strange tape-like things moving around in the light, and she skidded to a halt to watch what was going on.

Emma's gasped slightly when a Pokémon she had never seen before flew out of the bright light. It was pure white with a gray face and underbelly, gold hooves, and a strange gold wheel shaped object around its torso.

Arceus had his eyes locked on the meteor, not paying attention to the inhabitants below that watched in surprise and hope. She backed up and her jaw dropped slightly when all of his life plates appeared out of his body and she finally remembered something. This was the Pokémon that started everything! Arceus! She remembered learning about him for a few minutes in school and other Legendary Pokémon.

"WAIT NO!" she shouted as he neared the meteor. But he didn't hear her and it was too late for a large sphere surrounded him and he crashed into the meteor. The Pokémon seemed to have been watching in horror and she shielded her eyes, squinting.

The meteor disintegrated from where he hit and went up. It burned up even faster and it got bright white and then, it exploded, causing a shockwave to be sent through the sky. He screamed slightly in pain as he was knocked backwards by the shockwave, the life plates flying everywhere.

The little bits left crashed down into the ground and she yelped, running out of the way from one. Getting to a safe distance, she turned and stared in horror at the mess left behind by the meteor. The Pokémon fled further into the forest and she just stood there. Why would he do that? What had happened to the Legendary Pokémon who had started everything?

Emma snapped out of her thoughts when a hand tugged on hers and looked down, seeing Aipom standing there, pointing in the direction of the forest. "Ai! Ai ai!" it pleaded and ran away, stopping to wave to her, and ran away.

Looking around, she ran after it and maneuvered around the big craters. The Aipom seemed truly worried and she grew concerned by the second. As they ran deeper and deeper into the forest, she could hear the Pokémon chattering away and she slowed down when she entered the destroyed clearing.

Arceus laid motionless on the ground, his eyes closed. The ground had rose up where he impacted, making a crater almost. "Arceus..." she whispered and ran up to them. The Pokémon were trying to wake him up but succeeded to no avail.

"The...the um...the life plates!" she whispered and snapped her fingers, looking at them. "We need to find the life plates! Although I'm not sure what they really look like in reality..." They seemed to understand for some of them ran off and she ran off to try and find anything to help him.

She ran past tree after tree, the moonlight not exactly helping with the lighting, but she kept a close eye to the ground to see anything that stuck out. Pretty much, like something that wouldn't fit in the forest normally.

She heard the river a few feet in front of her and she ran faster, breathing a little too heavily. Trees and bushes rustled all around her and she soon made it and skidded to a halt. Her eyes scanned the river desperately and her gaze laid upon something shining faintly from the moonlight in the water.

She ran into the river and when it was about chest deep, she took a deep breath and plunged under the surface and opened her eyes, something she wasn't really good at doing. The water made it rather uncomfortable for her eyes but she tried her best to ignore it and reached down, yanking the strange object out of the sand and resurfaced, taking a breath and then proceeded to rub her eyes aggressively.

She waded back to the edge and walked out, looking down at it. Just in time to see it flash an array of colors in a strange design. This had to be it.

* * *

The Pokémon that huddled around the dying Arceus turned and moved out of the way as Emma walked up to them and she noticed the gold wheel around his torso begin to glow faintly. And so did the life plate she held.

To her surprise, it floated out of her arms, high up into the air, and floated back down towards him, disappearing into his body. The green jewels glowed bright and to their surprise, even more life plates floated up and seeped into his body!

They came from all around them in different directions and from far away. They backed up and just watched as each one disappeared, followed by more, until the last one had finally disappeared into his body and he began to glow.

Emma squinted her eyes and just watched in awe as Arceus rose up into the air, alive once again. Boy was it cool being in the presence of a Legendary! But scary at the same time. His figure was outlined in the moonlight and he opened his eyes, looking down at them.

Looking directly at her. "Human, are you the one who saved me?" the Legendary Pokémon asked curiously. She smiled and shook her head, feeling a hand grab hers and looked down, Aipom smiling up at her, and then she looked back up at him. "No Arceus, you saved US! You don't know how grateful we are to you."

He floated down and landed in front of her and leaned down, getting a better look. "Human, what is your name?"

"Emma. Emma Gold."

* * *

Eevee's ear twitched when Emma tossed a pebble into the river and she grunted. She had told only few people in school that she met Arceus and guess what? They didn't believe her. And then proceeded to pick on her for the rest of the day.

She wanted to end it. End it all. Not in a suicidal way though. That's a coward's way out. She just wanted someone to at least be on her side for once. "Emma." a voice murmured, causing her to jump and nearly throw Eevee out of her lap in fright.

She turned and she breathed out when she was that it was Arceus. But why was he here? Shouldn't he be in...his own dimension? Or something like that? "What seems to be troubling you?" he asked and stood next to her, looking down at her.

"It's nothing."

"That's not what I can see. Tell me, what's wrong? I'll listen."

The girl looked away and sighed out. "People are rude, okay? I don't like rude people." He nodded slightly and looked up. "What else? There's still something on your mind, I can tell." Eevee glanced at the two and she looked down. "It's just that...this world is so different. I can't stand the thought of people just using Pokémon for their own enjoyment. It's cruel but when I realize, there's nothing I can do about it."

"Not entirely true." Arceus murmured, making her look at him in confusion. "The way I see it is that you want to change the way certain people are to Pokémon. You say you can't do anything but you can, with my help."

"Your help?"

He nodded and floated out above the river and faced her. "I shall lend you some of my strength to make this happen." Her eyes widened when the life plates appeared out from his body and circled around his torso. "These keep me alive. They're apart of my being." he explained. "The power of Icicle, Sky, Pixie, and with the power of Mind, they all meld together and increase."

She watched in confusion and shock as the named plates circles together and glowed bright and grew smaller and smaller in size until they reached a size of a circle you could make with your thumb and pointer finger.

The brightness disappeared and it revealed to a pink jewel, about the size of a circle you could make with your thumb and pointer finger. An array of pink, purple, blue, red, white, and black swirled elegantly around inside of it and it floated down to her.

"Use this Jewel of Hope for the greater good. To make the world a better place for everyone, humans and Pokémon alike."

Emma grabbed it carefully and brought it closer to her eye to see it closer. "The Jewel of Hope?"

"But," Arceus went on, causing her to look at him, watching his life plates disappear back into his body. "Without that jewel, my life is diminished." She gave him a startled look and she stood up in concern, Eevee in her arms. "Emma, I am trusting you. Trusting you with my life. You may return it to me when you are done with the task that you've set for yourself."

She smiled and nodded. "Thank you Arceus. I'll be very careful with it and handle it with care." The Legendary Pokémon nodded as well and floated down to her. "Do not let it slip into the hands of the wrong person for they will use it for the opposite purpose. I will be watching you Emma to see the progress you make."

She watched him turn and fly high into the air. "Goodbye for now Arceus." she whispered and waved right as he disappeared into the portal. And it soon vanished afterward.

**A few things to point out. No, Arceus is not a human. He's the same Pokémon he is and yes, he's a boy in my story (even though he's genderless). Is there going to be romance? Heck no. Just friendship everywhere! And a lot of violence….**

**Please review and tell me what you think of the beginning! Until the next chapter!**

**P.S. There's a link to Emma's bio on my profile. Please check it out!**


	2. Chapter 2

Emma silently observed the Jewel of Hope all over, mesmerized by the array of colors elegantly flowing around inside of it. It was small enough to fit in a normal pocket but she didn't trust herself doing that. Half of her wanted to turn it into a necklace, just to show it off. But there was the other half that screamed no. And she was slowly giving into that side. Why?

Well, this jewel was some of Arceus's life plates! If she even put a scratch on it, it might hurt him. And pissing off the Pokémon who started everything was not on her list of stuff to do. She groaned and felt a head nuzzle into her hand and she looked down.

Umbreon looked up at her with calm eyes and she smiled. "Hey Umbreon. Did you have a nice nap?" He nodded and looked behind his shoulder as footsteps neared her bedroom door. The door creaked open and Emma's mother poked her head into her room. "Emma? What're you doing up? You have school tomorrow!"

"I know mom. It's just that...I've been wanting to turn this jewel into a necklace without doing any damage to it." she murmured and as if on que, she yawned loudly and rubbed her eyes. She smirked and walked up to her. "Where'd you get it?"

"A...a friend gave it to me." she replied, lying. Cause who would believe that Arceus gave it to her? No one. She took it from her and observed it all over. "Well sweetheart, I can help you with that. You do remember me making some jewelry for your Aunt, right?"

She nodded. "Well, they were real pearls, I'll tell you that. And they're still on the necklace today! So, I could help solve this problem. But please dear, go to sleep! You look tired as ever!" Emma chuckled and smiled, handing her the jewel, and stood up. "Okay. Just don't damage it. It's very valuable."

"I won't. Now get some sleep." the woman smiled and walked away. Umbreon watched her walk past her bed, stepping over a sleeping Luxray, and stop in front of the drawers near the closet. He stood up and stretched his tired legs, jumping onto her bed and settle into his spot.

They all had their own sleeping places in the house. Absol and he slept on Emma's bed, Luxray at the foot of it in front of the door to keep watch of "intruders", Weavile slept on the couch in the living room, Lucario in the chair, Zoroark on the roof because he loved the night breezes, and Cofagrigus near the bottom of the stairs and by the front door.

The girl sleepily picked out some pajamas and closed the drawer, walking out of her room. Luxray lifted his head up and yawned, revealing sharp canines, and lowered his head back down to his paws. _"She needs to stop staying up late."_

_"Yeah...but at least she goes to bed early in the summer."_ Umbreon murmured, watching the bathroom door close. They saw the kitchen light illuminate the stairs and a little bit of the hallway and he breathed out through his nose. _"Do you think we can trust Arceus? I smelt a little bit of his scent on her and I'm not sure if I could trust him."_

_"Well, I won't be the one to judge God, but, you do that. But for all I care, I want to sleep. I'm too..."_ He stopped to yawn again and rested his head against his paws again and closed his eyes. _"I'm too tired for this talk."_

Emma walked back out of the bathroom, in her pajamas, and she walked down the stairs and poked her head into the kitchen. "Night mom."

"Goodnight Emma." her mother murmured and she put some beads on a thick black string. She then looked into the living room. "Goodnight boys."

They grumbled a 'goodnight', even though she didn't understand them, but she understood that they said 'goodnight' to her and she walked back up the stairs. She walked into her room and opened the window for Zoroark so he wasn't stuck outside.

She turned the lamp off and she shut the door, the moon being a light for her to guide her way around Luxray and into bed. She was too tired to say anything else and as soon as her head pressed against the soft pillow, she was out.

The door creaked open and Absol walked in, shutting it with his hind foot, and he jumped up onto the other side of her bed and circled around, finally curling into a ball right by her torso. The thing that lulled them all to a nice sleep was the soft breeze of the night and the sound of Kricketots singing softly.

* * *

Emma's eyes cracked open and she grunted, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. The sun shown brightly through the window and she felt no Umbreon or Absol on her bed. She sat up slowly and yawned, stretching.

Then she just sat there for a few seconds until she realized something. She was late for school! "Crap!"

Zoroark looked up from where he sat and smirked._ "Everyday."_

_"I think it's become the norm for her to get up late."_ Cofagrigus chuckled, picking up her shoes so he could hand them to her when she came barreling down the stairs, trying not to trip. Most of her stuff was scattered all over the living room. Mainly her homework. Some notes, paper, pens, books, and other stuff was scattered around too. She could never be tidy when she was doing her homework. And she could NEVER stay focused.

Ultimately getting her a few soft growls from Luxray so she would pay attention. The Pokémon outside waiting for her were too eager for her to come out and play. School came first. And they all agreed. Of course, they didn't know much about the stuff she was learning, but they were willing to try and help. At least to just get her to stay focused, even if it was to result in chasing away the Pokémon waiting for her. It happened many times.

She rushed down the stairs, dressed in her strange ways again. But were they complaining? Nah, it was rather amusing actually. She wore a blue shirt that exposed her right shoulder, the sides having tears in it. She wore a gray spaghetti strapped shirt under it so that her mother wouldn't freak out. She wore a black skirt with no leggings on, and knee high socks.

She had plenty of skirts. Most of them having shorts attached to them. If they didn't have shorts attached to them, she would wear leggings to go with them.

She took her shoes from Cofagrigus in a hurry and put them on, quickly tying them. Her mother watched from in the kitchen and chuckled. She was always like this. Even as a child.

_"Mommy! Where're my hair bands?!" a little Emma called out, looking around her room in a hurry. She was late for preschool and that was something her teacher didn't really care for. Tardiness. "I don't know Emma. You had them of yesterday." her mother informed, watching her._

_"I have to find them! Today's show and tell and I can't be late!" she whined._

_A Zorua looked at her and smiled, chuckling. He was the kind of Pokémon that just loved hiding things. He ran up to her and sat down. "Emma!" She noticed him out the corner of her eye and looked at him. He scratched his head with his hind paw, her eyes widening when she saw her yellow hair band fall out of the thick tuft of fur on his head._

_"Zorua!"_

"I'm SO DEAD!" the girl shouted, quickly standing up. "I can't be late today! Some of my homework's due at the start of class!" She quickly gathered her stuff, shoved them into her bag, and froze. Where was her science book? There was an open book test today! She couldn't have lost it!

The others watched in amusement, Zoroark standing up and walking up to her. He tapped her shoulder, making her turn and look at him. "Zoroark, have you seen my-" She was stopped when he reached into his thick red fur and pulled out her science book. His fur was always the best place to hide her things. He even wondered how she didn't learn by now that this was the place where he put her stuff.

"Not cool!" she shouted, making him look at her in surprise. She huffed past him and put her science book into her bag. She rushed into the kitchen, grabbed a pack of Pop-Tarts, and flinched when something wrapped around her neck and hooked in the back. She looked down at it and she gasped.

The Jewel of Hope was attached to a black necklace, not even scratched or damaged! "Mom...how'd-"

"It took me a while to see what kind of pattern should go with such a pretty jewel. And besides, it's mommy's secret!" the woman smiled and held a finger up to her lips. The pattern was beautiful, she'll give her that. It went from a slightly big blue bead, a smaller black bead, a long pointed bead (which almost seemed like a tooth of some sort), and another smaller black bead, and started over again with the big blue bead.

She also handed her a written note. "Hand this to the office. Now you should get going." The girl nodded and closed her eyes. "I guess I'll just have to ride my bike to school."

"What about your electric scooter?"

"To tell the truth, it's almost out of gas."

She smirked and nodded. Emma turned and walked out of the front door, not waiting for her Pokémon. _"Thanks a lot Zoroark. Now she's mad at us."_ Weavile grunted. Zoroark's fur fluffed up in defense. _"I'm sure she's not mad at all of us."_ Absol brushed off and hopped onto the couch. _"Let's just enjoy a day off from school."_

* * *

"You're late Emma." the teacher scolded. Emma nodded and frowned, holding her science book. "I know Mr. Slater. I just..."

"Sit down. You won't finish the test so I want you to stay after school to finish the rest of it."

"Yes sir..." she whispered and walked over to her seat. Some kids giggled and she just ignored them, grabbing the paper he handed her. She opened her science book to p. 78 and began the test.

* * *

"Did you hear about the people dressed in creepy clothes take that little boy's Pokémon away?" some kids asked.

"Oh I heard about that! Wasn't he from Lacunosa Town?" others replied.

Emma looked around, feeling rather guilty that she didn't bring her Pokémon to school. And the fact that she kind of yelled at Zoroark. She didn't mean to yell. She knew he loved to hide her things in his fur. Man, she felt like a major a-hole now.

"What's up Emms?" Jimmy asked in a high but sly tone, causing her to crack a smile. He chuckled and sat down next to her. "There you go. I knew I could make you smile! So, where're your Pokémon? You usually aren't seen without them."

"I...I yelled at Zoroark and stormed off without them." she replied quietly, looking away. He gave her a surprised look and before he could bombard her with questions, she spoke up. "So...what's this I'm hearing about a little boy from Lacunosa Town getting his Pokémon taken away?"

"Oh that! Well from what I heard, there was a little boy in Lacunosa Town playing outside with his Pokémon. And these two people dressed in weird black clothes just came out of nowhere and took his Pokémon away! And they ran away."

"Oh that's ridiculous! Stories I tell you." Emma grunted. He shrugged. "I dunno about it being a story Emma. A lot of people are talking about it. It's said that they've stolen even more Pokémon from all over. I don't think they have a planned path."

**After school….**

Emma silently rode her bicycle down the slightly rocky route. The ordeal about the boy who had his Pokémon stolen flooded her mind. It was a story. Right? Pushing the thoughts aside, she just silently rode down the route. The forest surrounded both sides of her and she glanced around. There was no Pokémon out and the air seemed still. Usually there would be tons of the creatures going about their business.

The sound of yelling perked her attention and she slowed down a little to listen in. "Stop it! Give it back!" a boy shouted. She stopped fully and got off her bike, putting it on its stand. She walked into the forest, listening to the argument.

"Too fucking bad you brat! This is ours now!"

"NO! GIVE ME BACK MY BRONZOR!"

"SHUT UP!"

The girl's eyes widened when she saw a cloaked figure kick a little boy in the face, sending him to the ground. He let out a cry of pain and her eyes widened. They were dressed so strangely. Who were these two men?

Before she could even stop herself from saying anything, she blurted out a sentence that made them look at her. "Leave that poor kid alone!" They gritted their teeth in annoyance as she ran out of the forest and up to them. "Make us!"

The little boy got up and tried to stop crying. "Give me back my Pokémon please!" She tensed up and she looked at them in shock. Were these the two guys that stole the other little boy's Pokémon? "What the hell is wrong with you?! Why did you take his Pokémon?!"

"It's our job, girl! Now MIND YOUR OWN BUSINESS!" the one on the left spat. She flinched at how harsh he sounded but stood her ground. He turned and he stormed off. "NO!" the boy cried out and began to sob.

Her heart dropped and she ran towards them, having no control over her body. The man grunted when he was shoved away and he hit the ground, growling, and turned to glare at her. Only to receive a kick to the face.

The other man backed up in surprise and gritted his teeth. "You bitch!" The Bronzor quickly floated back to its owner and he ran away, holding it in his arms. "You're gonna regret the day you ever crossed Team Darkness!" the injured man hissed bitterly.

"Ooh, I'm so scared!" she taunted, but not in a joking way. She was really angry. He stood up and took out a strange looking Pokéball. "Go Mightyena!" He tossed it up and it opened, a flash of red coming out.

She yelped when the Mightyena appeared and it snarled at her. She then just remembered something. Her Pokémon were back home. 'Oh...damn.' she thought.

"Mightyena use Take Down!" he ordered. It snarled again and sprinted towards her. Emma screamed and quickly turned, running away as fast as she could. It was still in hot pursuit of her until she disappeared into the forest.

The second man pulled out a Bluetooth and put it in his ear, touching a button. "Sir, we may have a problem on our hands."

* * *

Emma took no time to get on her bike. She grabbed the handles and continued to run, putting the kick stand up, and hopped onto it, peddling as fast as she could. There was no time to stop, turn, and say 'Hey can we work this out?'

Her legs screamed for her to stop but since her heart was pumping extra blood into them, she had even more energy to keep going. She breathed heavily but kept her eyes locked on the dirt road. I guess that was why all of the Pokémon were hiding.

A few minutes had passed and she grinding to a stop, the tires skidding to a half. She leaned over the bars and breathed heavily, almost having the urge to throw up because she was so frightened. She got off her bike and shakily walked around, listening quietly.

She stopped and just listened. After a while, she confirmed that they were gone and she breathed out in relief. Her heart had finally gotten back to its normal heart beat and she swallowed, her throat dry due to her rapid and frantic breathing.

Maybe there was a river nearby so she could at least get a drink so her throat didn't feel like sandpaper. She walked into the forest, being alert for any sounds that didn't seem normal. Maybe this was a bad idea. Maybe it wasn't. She just didn't know.

She just didn't feel so safe now. Not without her Pokémon. But Arceus said he would be watching. Is he watching right now? Ugh, this just confused her so. Who were these people and why did they call themselves 'Team Darkness'?

What was Team Darkness anyway? Was it just those two guys? This made no sense! "My my, look what we have here!" a voice purred, causing her to jump and tense up, looking around. "Who's there?! Show yourself!"

"Impatient, are we?"

She tensed up even more when a man walked out from the shadows, his hands in his pants pockets. He wore almost all black, aside from the red torn shirt he wore under the torn black trench coat he wore. Well, she didn't know if it was a trench coat or not but it was certainly long.

What she found odd was that he had an ashy gray, almost a shade of ashy pink, hair that puffed out. "Who're you?" Emma asked after finding her voice. He stopped and placed a hand on his chest. "My name is Alexander Cross. Most people call me Alex though. I'm the leader of Team Darkness."

"Those two guys back there?" she asked in a whisper. "They tried taking away some boy's Pokémon!" He grinned and nodded. "Yes I know. But do you think I care?"

"You should! It's inhumane!"

"No, my dear. KILLING Pokémon is inhumane. And I've done it my whole life and never once gave a fuck."

Her eyes widened at this statement and he walked closer to her. "So, what's your name?"

"Why should I tell you?"

"Well I told you mine! I think it's only fair if you tell me yours."

The girl tensed even more when he circled around her. She didn't feel like telling this strange man her name. But it slipped out. "Emma...Emma Gold." He breathed out and grabbed her hand, making her flinch, and kissed the top of her hand. "Emma, such a beautiful name."

She pulled her hand away quickly, giving him a strange look. But it didn't stop him. "So, are you single?"

"Who's asking?"

"I am, cause I'm lookin'."

She gave him a horrified look and backed up. "Dude! I'm fifteen years old! You know pedophilia's against the law!" He made a pouty face but grinned. "I don't think the law's capable of stopping me anytime soon. Just think about it, I've killed so many Pokémon and I'm not in prison yet!"

Her eyes widened and she grunted when he grabbed her chin, pulling her close to his face. What mesmerized her was that his green irises were swirled and his pupils were a shade of pink. "Now where're your Pokémon? A fifteen year old has to have Pokémon of her own!"

"I-I don't have any! I...I uh." She was shushed when he put a finger on her lips and made a 'shh'. "Wanna see mine? Maybe someday I can see yours." He snapped his fingers and stepped aside to her relief.

But the relief was short lived for she noticed a strange looking shadow moving towards them. "What is that...?" she whispered in horror, backing up. Alexander grinned and watched his Pokémon rise up from the shadows. "Darkrai."

The sun disappeared behind the clouds, making it darker out, and she almost screamed in fright but she bit the inside of her cheek to keep herself from doing so. Darkrai appeared out of the ground finally, his eye glowing in the dark.

"I hear you gave some of my members some trouble for doing their job." the man murmured, reaching behind his back. She turned and screamed in fright when he suddenly pulled a pistol on her. "I fucking hate it when people get in my way, you know that kitten? That's why I kill them. I kill their Pokémon too. I fucking hate them with a passion. They're nothing but trash in my eyes. Every last one of 'em will die. And I'll see to it that they WILL."

Emma backed up in fright, beginning to tremble. Was this guy a lunatic?! What's his problem?! "Wh-what about that one?" She pointed at Darkrai. Alexander grinned, revealing sharp teeth. "He's still of use to me. Until I get so pissed off at him, then he'll die."

Darkrai looked away in annoyance.

"Now, are we going to play nice or am I going to have to use some force on you?" he asked, eyeing her all over. She noticed him lick his lips and she shivered. Maybe just staying home was a good idea. Now she regretted ever yelling at Zoroark.

"Oh would you look at the time! I have to be on my way to...to the grocery store!" she called out and began to walk away. She grunted when he grabbed her wrist and spun her around, pulling her very close to him. She yelped when he pressed the pistol against her jugular and he leaned down. "You aren't leaving anywhere, kitten."

She screamed out in fright when he began to kiss her neck up and down, eagerly keeping her there. "HELP! HELP ME! SOMEBODY!" She pulled back and kneed him in the stomach as hard as she could. He grunted and released her, holding the throbbing area, and she sprinted away as fast as she could.

Aiming his pistol at her, he pulled the trigger, missing her about an inch. He fired three more rounds, each missing, but when he fired the fourth, it zoomed towards her but disintegrated on impact with what looked like a...force field around her.

"DAMN YOU EMMA! I'LL SEE TO IT THAT YOU'RE MINE OR DEAD!"

* * *

Emma banged on the door to her house. "MOM! MOM LET ME IN!" The door open and she threw herself inside, crashing to the floor. "Emma? Emma where on Earth were you?!" her mother demanded, concern in her tone.

She panted heavily, having had sprinted all the way home with no stops. Her Pokémon gathered around her in concern and she shakily reached up. "W-water! I-I need water!" Her throat stung even more and she coughed hard.

"A-alright." the woman whispered and rushed to get her request. Lucario and Weavile helped her up and she trembled there. _"Emma what happened?"_ Cofagrigus questioned. Her mother came back and handed her the tall glass.

She eagerly grabbed it and gulped down the water. They just stared at her and she pushed her way past them, going into the kitchen to refill her glass. "Emma, what happened? Are you okay?" she asked, brushing her bangs out of her eyes. She shook her head and pulled away from the glass, taking in a big breath of air. "I...I was on my way back from school."

"Why're you so late then?"

"I...I ran into these guys who were trying to take away some little boy's Pokémon. And they sent one after me and I got out of there as fast as I could. But then I ran into some other guy and his Darkrai and he started shooting at me and I'm freaking out and I'M SCARED!"

She jumped when she buried her head into her shoulder and began to cry, clutching onto her for dear life. The others looked at each other in shock.

* * *

After dinner, Emma had calmed down and she was in her room doing her homework. The radio she had was turned on and playing piano music to help soothe her even more. She flipped through pages of her math book and looked back at the problem she wrote down.

She looked out the window, looking at the beautiful colors in the sky the sun made as it was going down. The rest of her homework barely fit on her desk since it wasn't that big. Not to mention it had a computer on it as well.

A knock at her door sounded off and she didn't look up from her homework. "Come in." The door opened and Zoroark walked towards her. _"Emma...I..."_ He stopped behind her and grabbed her arm gently. _"I gotta tell you something."_

She looked over her shoulder at him and she frowned. "Zoroark...about earlier, I'm sorry I yelled. I was just so annoyed that I woke up so late and I didn't mean it. I know how you love to hide things in your fur and I..."

He noticed her voice crack and he frowned, pulling her chair out along with her. "I can't believe I did that!" He nuzzled his head against her cheek, causing her to smile. They had been best friends ever since he hatched as a Zorua from the egg her father gave her. Inseparable actually.

_"It's okay Emma. I forgive you."_ Zoroark murmured, coming out as a soft growl, and he wrapped an arm around her shoulder, bringing her into a hug. His fur was the softest out of all of theirs. Though Cofagrigus didn't have fur, he did as a Yamask.

A throat clearing made her jump and look out the window. Her eyes widened when she saw that it was Arceus. "Might I be able to talk to you Emma? Or is now a bad time?" he asked.

* * *

"From what I've seen today, I think tomorrow is the day you should be heading out to fulfill your wish." he murmured, standing next to her. The girl lowered her head and didn't say anything. "Is something wrong Emma?"

"I don't know. It's just that...I don't know if my mom would handle me going out on an adventure. That's why she stopped me when I was little." she replied. He closed his eyes and nodded. "I understand. But if not you, then who? If not tomorrow, then when? Do you really want those people to continue what they're doing to Pokémon? Without anyone to help them?"

She gasped slightly and looked up at him. "No! I want to help but...I'm afraid I might fail."

"You will never fail with the Jewel of Hope Emma. And I to be watching you. I'm sure your mother will understand."

**The next day…**

So it was settled. She would be leaving today, much to her inner objections. Emma put on her underwear and bra, slipping on a red dress that went down to the middle of her thighs, a slightly large white heart near the bottom on the side, a slightly gray line at the top and had black straps.

She slipped on some socks before putting on gray leggings. She opened her closet and pulled out a shoe box, opening it. She pulled out the black boots she never wore and slipped them on. She zipped them up and stood up.

She brushed her hair and parted it down the middle, pulling one side away. She grabbed a green hair tie with two fake leaves on it and tied her hair on the one side to a pigtail. She then did the same with the other side, same hair tie.

She then slipped a hairpin on the tightened hair tie, two blue streamers on it that curled around each other. And then did the same again with the other hair tie. She had already talked with her mother about the journey, leaving out why she was actually leaving, and after a couple of hours, her mother agreed to it.

She grabbed a newer, bigger bag that was empty and she sighed out, walking out of her room. She walked down the stairs and smelled breakfast cooking, peering into the kitchen. Her mother looked at her and tried to smile. "I...I decided to make us all a nice big meal before you all head out." she whispered.

She sensed the sadness in her tone and sat down at the table. "Mom, I CAN stay here just so you won't be alone. I mean...I don't have to go." the girl murmured.

"No sweetheart! No...you go and have fun! I'm fine by myself." she objected, putting the stack of pancakes on the table, followed by bacon and toast. She then walked out into the living room. "Okay boys. Breakfast is ready."

_"I get first dibs."_ Weavile grinned and ran into the kitchen.

_"Slow down! We don't need any casualties!"_ Luxray scolded.

Breakfast was rather silent for their taste. Emma tried not to stare at her mother, guilt going all throughout her body. She didn't want to leave. Her mother would break down if she did. She fought back tears and closed her eyes tight.

She flinched when a hand pressed against her arm and she looked at Zoroark, who gave her a comforting look.

After breakfast, Emma stood in the living room, her mother going off the list of things she wrote down for her to have. "So, do you have clothes?"

"Yes mom." she replied and smiled.

"Food?"

"Yes."

"Feminine products?"

"Mom!"

"What? I'm just saying!" she laughed and smiled, grabbing her shoulders. "You have everything, right?" Emma nodded and grabbed her hands. "Everything that's on the list." She looked away and walked up the stairs.

It was quiet for a few until she came back down and put something into her hands. Money. "Mom I-"

"You need money for food and shelter, don't you?"

"I guess..."

"Then take it."

She closed her hand and kissed her forehead, giving her a sad but happy smile. "Go make me proud Emma." The girl nodded and hugged her. It almost seemed like an eternity but that was fine to her. They pulled away and she walked past her, going up to the front door.

She opened it and looked at her Pokémon. "Okay guys. Let's get going." They filed out the door and she gave her mother one last glance before she shut the door. They walked down the road silently, the gentle morning breeze blowing their hair and fur around.

She narrowed her eyes as she felt her mother's eyes watch her from the kitchen window and felt her lower lip tremble. She had no idea how ten year olds could do this. Absol looked over his head when he heard soft sniveling, seeing that she was crying, and looked on ahead.

* * *

Emma's mother wiped her eyes, watching with sad eyes as her child disappeared from her sight.

**There's a link to Alex Cross's bio on my profile. Check it out!**


	3. Chapter 3

Jimmy grumbled to himself as he walked down the stairs, having had to pause an important battle in his game, and heard the doorbell again. "I'm coming! Keep your pants on!" He opened the door and stared at the person in surprise. "E-emma?"

Emma slightly smiled and grabbed her arm. "Hi Jimmy. Can...can I come in for a few?"

* * *

"Thank you." Emma thanked as he handed her a glass of water. They sat in the kitchen and he gave her a confused look. "So...what're you doing here Emma? You never visit here!" She nodded, knowing that it was true, and closed her eyes. "Jimmy...have you ever went on a Pokémon Journey before?"

He stared at her and smiled. "Yeah. It was the best thing I ever experienced!" She tilted her head. "Like how?"

He smirked and leaned back, closing his eyes. "It was such an amazing thrill to travel all around Unova. I battled with other trainers all while making my Pokémon stronger. I was able to experience new things that I never would have gotten to! And what tops it all off is that I was able to beat most of the Gym Leaders!"

"And what happened?"

"I couldn't beat the last Gym Leader. No matter how many times I challenged him, he was too tough. So, I decided to just stop there. My progress was good enough where it was at."

She gave him a sympathetic look and he opened his eyes, looking at her. "Why do you ask?" He noticed a light blush form and he began to laugh. "Emma! You haven't gone on a Pokémon Journey before?!"

The girl huffed and crossed her arms. "My parents didn't want me to go out when I was ten! And after a while I forgot about it and..."

"Oh man! You're possibly the biggest noob I've ever seen now!" he continued to laugh and fell out of his chair, grunting in pain. The blush on her face got darker and he finally calmed down. Standing up, he sighed and brought her into a hug. "Oh poor Emma! You need to be loved!"

"I don't need love! I just need information and...tactics..." she objected.

He smirked and pulled away. "Then come with me Emms! I shall help you with your sever case of noob." She giggled as he put emphasis on 'noob' and he took her hand and brought her upstairs.

* * *

Emma watched silently as Jimmy searched through his drawers and shouted an 'ah ha!' and turned to face her. "What I'm about to show you is how much progress I've made on my journey. You should be grateful you're witnessing this special occasion!"

He tossed it to her and she caught it in both hands. She opened the thin case and her jaw dropped. Seven beautifully crafted badges were in their places inside the case. "Wow...Jimmy. What are these?"

"Gym Badges." he replied with a smile and leaned against the drawer. "Pokémon Trainers get those after they beat the Gym Leaders."

"You're missing one."

He nodded and closed his eyes. "Yep. I know. That's where the Gym Badge from Opelucid City's supposed to go. I never beat him though so that's why I don't have it." She nodded slowly and brushed her finger along each of them. They were all surrounded by gold lining and the color felt like glass. They even sparkled when light shone on them.

"I might as well tell you before you set out. The first one with the three diamonds. I got that one in Striaton City after defeating Cress, a user of Water-type Pokémon. He has two other brothers, Chili and Cilan. Chili is a user of Fire-type Pokémon and Cilan is a user of Grass-type Pokémon. One of them will battle you depending on which Pokémon you started out with."

He then pointed to the rectangular one. "You'll get this badge after defeating the Nacrene City Gym Leader Lenora. She is a user of Normal-type Pokémon." She listened silently, mesmerized by the beauty of the badges. "This one's received after you defeat Burgh, Castelia City's Gym Leader. He is an expert with Bug-type Pokémon."

He then pointed at the lightning bolt shaped badge. "The Bolt Badge is received from Elesa, Nimbasa City's Gym Leader. She uses Electric-type Pokémon. After her is Clay, Driftveil City's Gym Leader. A user of Ground-type, you get the Quake Badge after defeating him. The next one is the Jet Badge, given to you from Skyla in Mistralton City, a user of Flying-type Pokémon. Next is the Freeze Badge, obtained from Brycen, Icirrus City's Gym Leader. He uses Ice-type Pokémon."

"What about the last one?" she asked.

"Like I said, I haven't gotten the last one so I wouldn't know." he chuckled and closed it. He put it up and faced her. "Now that you're finally going out on a Pokémon Journey," He tried not to laughed and bit the inside of his lip. "Your first destination is Striaton City. You'll need to get the Gym Badge from either Cilan, Cress, or Chili in order to go farther."

Emma looked around and stood up. "Jeez...then I should probably get going then."

Jimmy shrugged. "It's not that far away. Want me to go with you?" She gave him a surprised look but then smiled and nodded. "I'd like that."

* * *

Luxray and the others couldn't stop staring at Jimmy as he and Emma walked side by side together down the dirt road. _"Is Jimmy coming with us?"_ Umbreon questioned.

_"I don't know."_ Absol replied and looked at him. _"But from how Emma was acting after we left the house, she must need some company."_

"So where'd ya get the necklace Emms?" Jimmy questioned, looking at her. Emma picked the jewel up with her fingers and placed it up in the sky. The sun made it shine even more and she smiled. "A friend loaned it to me."

He nodded and looked on ahead. Zoroark's ear twitched and he growled, looking behind his shoulder at the shadows the trees made. Something just wasn't right. There was a strange stillness to the air and there weren't any Pokémon out.

And there was also this strange feeling he had. Almost like they were being watched. More particularly, Emma was. That didn't sit too well with him and he quickly walked up to her, making sure to stay close to her side.

"Good to have you with us Zoroark." the boy smirked and held a fist out. Zoroark smirked as well and fist bumped him, making Emma giggle. "You boys are weird."

"What?" they both groaned in disbelief.

* * *

The trip to Striaton City wasn't as bad as she thought it was going to be. Sure they ran into a few Trainers who would persist on a battle and Emma would make Jimmy battle for her because of her "lack of experience".

They saw buildings in front of them and Jimmy smiled, stopping. She stopped as well and looked at him. "I gave you all the tips I know and pointers. So you should be fine battling the Striaton City Gym Leaders."

She gulped and he placed his hands on her shoulders. "Good luck Emma. Don't forget to tell me all about your progress!"

"Wait! You're not staying?"

"What? No! Our agreement was for me to bring you here! Silly Emms. Go get them, tiger."

She watched with sad eyes as he turned and walked back the way they came and she got a determined look on her face. "Let's do this." Zoroark smirked at his trainer's mood and got a strange sensation. The feeling of being watched was gone.

In fact, it left when Jimmy did...

* * *

Jimmy groaned again as there was a knock at the door and he grumbled to himself. "If that's Emma chickening out, I'm going to give her a stern talking to." Walking up to the front door, he opened it right in the middle of saying, "Emma what the hell-".

Instead of his friend standing there, there was a man standing there instead, dressed in almost all black. "Um...can I help you?" the boy asked awkwardly. Alex smirked and chuckled. "I believe so. The name's Alexander Cross and I understand that you're friends with a young lady named Emma Gold."

"Yeah...why?"

"I need to know where she is. You see, she left something behind at home that's VERY important. And it needs to get to her right away."

Jimmy crossed his arms and cocked an eyebrow. He wasn't buying this story. "Well, I don't know where Emma went. So please, leave." He shut the door but felt it stop and looked down, seeing that he put his foot in the door to keep it from closing.

He yelped when it was flung open and was met only by a gun pointed in his face and immediately backed up. "That's not how this fucking works. Now you're going to tell me where Emma went or I'll shoot you and your fucking Pokémon down right here." Alex demanded through gritted teeth.

"I-I told you! I-I don't know where E-emma went!" the boy yelped. The man stared him down, the door being closed behind him, and cocked the gun. "I'm going to give you to the count of three to tell me where she went or so fucking help you I will BLOW YOUR FUCKING BRAINS ALL OVER THE DAMN PLACE!"

"Please don't kill me!"

"One!" Alex shouted, making him back up even more in fright. "Two! Thr-"

"Emma went to Striaton City!" Jimmy shouted, covering his head. He gave him in surprised look but then grinned, pulling the gun back. "Striaton City, huh? Then that's where we're going."

**OMG, long update wait and I apologize. It's exam week in school.**


	4. Chapter 4

"I can't do this. Let's go." Emma whispered and turned, walking away. Zoroark quickly turned and pulled her back. _"Emma don't do that!"_

Lucario smirked and closed his eyes. "I can't do this! I'm not skilled in battle!" she protested loudly, squirming in his grasp. He let her go and she just stared at him. _"Even though you may not be, doesn't mean we aren't."_ Absol murmured, nuzzling his head into her hand. She looked down at him and sighed, swallowing hard.

She turned and they walked into the city. It was actually really nice. The nice crisp air made it even better. People walked around, going about their business, some having their Pokémon out by their side. Some she haven't even seen before!

Sliding her arm against her bag, she flinched when she felt something unusual press against her skin and stopped, looking down. "What the...? Where'd this come from?" It was a gray and red Pokédex! But there was a problem. She didn't own a Pokédex. 'Did Jimmy slip this in my bag?' she thought curiously, looking at it all over.

She flipped it open and pressed a button, the screen flashing on. There were no Pokémon listed. "Did he erase his memory? IF a Pokédex has memory of what Pokémon he saw." She smiled to herself and closed her eyes. 'Thanks Jimmy.'

Some people glanced at her as she passed them, wondering why she had so many Pokémon following her. There was a delicious smell in the air and she inhaled deeply, the sweet aroma traveling down her throat.

Weavile looked around. _"So...we're in Striaton City, but, where're the Gym Leaders?"_ Umbreon glanced back at him. _"Hiding?"_

_"No that can't be."_ Luxray put in. _"Why would they be hiding?"_

_"You never know."_

Emma seemed to be wondering the same thing. "I wonder where we're supposed to go." She glanced around. The only thing she really saw were a few nice restaurants, side shops, and tall buildings. Nothing really stood out as a Gym.

A woman and child passed them and she turned. "Excuse me ma'am." She turned and the child turned as well, curiosity in her eye. "Um...do you know where the Striaton Gym is?" She smiled and motioned with her head behind her. "You're standing in front of it."

They gave her a surprised look and turned. "Is that all?"

"Um...yeah. It is. Thanks."

The woman nodded and walked away, her child following close behind her. They just stood there. Zoroark could feel that she was tense and was on the verge of chickening out. The Jewel of Hope began to glow and she looked down at it. It was as if Arceus was telling her that she would be okay. Hopefully.

"A-are you guys ready?" the girl asked quietly. They all nodded and she swallowed the lump in her throat and clenched her fists, trying to calm her nerves. This wasn't a rush of excitement. This was a rush of fear, dread, and a little nausea. She just didn't feel so good. How can ten year olds do this? She was FIFTEEN for crying out loud!

Taking another deep breath, she marched straight up to the door to their surprise. But then she stopped, a hand on it. 'I have to do this! In order to keep my promise to Arceus. But why am I so afraid of the outcome?'

_"C'mon Emma. We have you covered."_ Cofagrigus murmured, placing a hand on her back as he soothingly tried to calm her down. The others followed. She could tell he was trying to help her and she smiled, looking at him, and nodded. "Okay. Here we go."

She opened the doors with both hands and was instantly met by a sweet and delicious aroma of food. Chairs and tables were scattered around, the people having stopped eating to see what was going on. Three boys, a little older than her, were standing at different tables, dressed in server outfits, just staring at her.

And then her confidence went down the drain. Some people began to murmur to the other people sitting beside them, giving her and her Pokémon questioning looks. "Ah! Another customer!" the one with green, pulled back hair smiled and threw his hands up happily. "Welcome!"

He then leaned down to the man he stood by and whispered in his ear, the man nodding shortly after, and he walked away. "My name is Cilan and I'm going to be your server for today!"

"B-but I-" Emma tried to explain but was cut off by the red haired boy walking up to them. "Not so fast Cilan. You already have a big handful of people who still need to have their orders taken!" He then grabbed her hand and bent over. "Welcome. My name is Chili and I'LL be your server today."

"But I-" she tried to explain again but was stopped by a throat clearing. They looked to see a blue haired boy standing there, his thick blue locks covering his left eye. "If I'm not mistaken, you BOTH have plenty of tables to serve today. Remember? You two took most of them as a bet to see who could serve the most tables until the afternoon? Winner gets to battle the next Trainer who stops by?"

They gave him a horrified look and motioned for him to keep quiet. A few girls sitting by giggled in amusement. Emma was just confused. "My name is Cress and I'll be your server for today. Please, have a seat."

"But I didn't-" she almost shouted.

"Nonsense. Please! Have a seat." Cress smiled as he gently pushed her to an empty table, Chili, Cilan, and her Pokémon following close behind. He grabbed a menu behind him and handed it to her. "How about we start you off with a nice drink. We have a great selection of beverages."

"Or if you're not thirsty, we could get right to the meal!" Chili butt in and grinned, a pen and pad in hand and leaned down. "So, have you decided?"

"I haven't even looked and I'm not-"

"Now now guys. Let's be gentlemen in this and let the young lady decide." Cilan smiled and they backed up. Emma groaned and put her hands in her hair, covering her eyes. "I didn't come here to eat! I just came here to battle the Gym Leaders!"

She then tensed up, remembering what Jimmy had said. Their names...these were the Gym Leaders!? "Excuse me? Could you repeat that again?" the green haired boy asked, leaning down. She sighed and sat back. "I...I just wanted to battle."

"Battle?" all three questioned in surprise. It was silent for a moment and Chili sat down next to her, as did his brothers. "Wait...um, how old are you?"

"Chili! Where're your manners?!" Cress demanded. He shushed him by holding a hand up. His eyes definitely screamed curiosity and she felt a little uncomfortable. "Um...I'm fifteen." Their eyes widened and Chili tried to stop a smile from spreading on his face, trying not to laugh. But he couldn't help himself.

He fell to the floor, laughing and banging his fists on the floor. "Chili! Get up!" Cilan shouted. Cress sat back and snickered as well. "What's so bad about my age and wanting to battle!?" Emma demanded.

"I'm sorry about this. We just usually have...well, younger Trainers here all the time." he explained. The red haired boy finally gained his composure again and stood up slowly. "I'm sorry. It's just...SO funny!" Cress had stopped snickering and sighed. "I would love to have a battle. Today has not been so busy for me."

"But I want to have a battle! I'm all fired up now!" Chili whined. Cilan smiled and placed a hand of their shoulders. "Well now, have we forgotten our manners?" They looked at him and smirked, the lights going out.

The girl was starting to regret her decision of coming to this city. But a gentle squeeze of the hand from Zoroark was enough to comfort her and make her stay. The people seated at the tables watched quietly, happy to have some entertainment. It wasn't as dark after a few seconds and she watched in confusion as the three Gym Leaders walked towards the fireplace.

"Alright. A Gym Battle it is then!" Cilan smiled and faced her, lights showering down on him.

"You must mean business to come and challenge us. Then I'll give you a battle that's so hot not even your Weavile can cool you down!" Chili announced, holding a fist up to his face, lights showering down on him. Weavile's fur fluffed up a little at this comment.

"Or you may have a nice refreshing battle that'll cool you down to the bone!" Cress announced and held his hands out, a smirk on his face, the lights above all three of them outlining their stances. Emma gave them a strange look. "What...?"

"This IS the Striaton Gym of course!" the green haired boy smiled. His brothers stood closer to him, smirks on their faces. "And the three of us," the red haired boy began.

"We're triplet brothers!" the blue haired boy added. "And we're the Gym Leaders!"

'Well, at least Jimmy warned me about there being three Gym Leaders. I'll thank him for that. But...I don't know about their Pokémon well enough to be confident.' she thought.

"Now it's Showtime!"

They watched in awe as the walls behind them split apart, the wall the fireplace was attached to moving down into the floor. The people seemed as if they weren't really bothered by this. When she could clearly see the hidden room, her eyes widened when she saw that it was a rocky scenic arena. "Wow..."

"Well come on in! Don't be shy!" Chili grinned from behind her, making her jump, and he pushed her into the arena. "As a precaution so your food doesn't get unwanted flavor, would you mind if we closed the room off?" Cilan asked the people eating.

Some shook their head. "Not at all. You do what's best." a man smiled. He nodded a thanks and stepped back as the wall began to close again. Once it closed, Emma looked around in fascination. "Oh forgive us young lady, we didn't ask for your name yet!" Cress apologized, closing his eyes. He held a hand out and she slightly blushed, hesitantly shaking it. "Emma..."

"Well it's a pleasure to have you battling today Emma."

"Now's the time you select your battle opponent." Cilan informed, making her look at him. Jimmy never told her about this. "Wait, I have to select?" He nodded and smiled. "Correct! You can battle either me, Chili, or Cress! And you can take your time! Our rules state that if you're victorious against the one you choose, you'll earn the Trio Badge!"

Chili reached behind him and smirked, taking out his Pokéball. "But before you choose, why don't you meet our Pokémon partners! Heats up!" Throwing it out towards the arena, it opened and a flash broke out of it, hitting the floor. And when it disappeared, a red monkey stood there, a thick flame shaped tuft of fur on its head and tip of tail. "Pansear." it greeted.

Cress was the next one to take his Pokéball out. "This is the Pokémon I'll be using! Make a splash!" Throwing it out just like his brother did, it opened and a flash broke out, hitting the floor right by Pansear. And a blue monkey was replaced after it disappeared, circular tufts of fur on its head and tip of tail. "Panpour!" it greeted.

"And finally me! Here we go! My partner!" Cilan smiled and threw his Pokéball up into the air above him. It burst open, the same light bursting forth, landing by Panpour. A green monkey replaced the light shortly after, the tuft of fur on its head like a bush, leaf shaped fur on the tip of its tail. "Pansage!"

She looked at them in awe. Never before had she seen these Pokémon before. And that's when she remembered the Pokédex Jimmy hid in her bag and took it out. She flipped it open and pressed the button, turning it on.

Out of confusion, she just aimed it at Pansage and to her surprise, it did the rest! "Pansage, the Grass Monkey Pokémon. This Pokémon dwells deep in the forest. Eating a leaf from its head whisks weariness away as if by magic."

She then aimed it at Panpour. "Panpour, the Spray Pokémon. The water stored inside the tuft on its head is full of nutrients. Plants that receive its water grow large." And then she pointed it at Pansear. "Pansear, the High Temp Pokémon. When it is angered, the temperature of its head tuft reaches 600 °F. It uses its tuft to roast berries."

"Three new Pokémon already met. Panpour, Pansear, and Pansage..." Emma whispered in amazement. "All just like what Jimmy said. Fire, Grass, and Water-types."

"So Emma, who's it gonna be?" Cilan asked, walking up to her. "Are you going to battle me?"

"Or me?" Chili asked, too much excitement in his tone. "You and I could heat up this room together!"

"Or me?" Cress asked, calmer than any of them. "And I'm sure she would not Chili, "heat up this room" with you."

"What's that supposed to mean?!" he demanded.

Absol looked at their Pokémon. This wasn't looking so good for her. Sure, Luxray could destroy Panpour in a single blow but he, Umbreon, Lucario, Cofagrigus, Weavile, and Zoroark, were at a disadvantage.

_"Hopefully she thinks this through because the chances of winning are slim."_ Umbreon observed. He just didn't know if the three didn't know that they were mostly Dark-types, or if they did and would play easy with her.

And their Pokémon seemed to be a little cocky as well.

The girl smiled and took off her bag and walked up to a corner, setting it down and faced them. "If it wouldn't be much of a bother, I would like to battle...Cress, first." Chili's jaw dropped with disappointment and he lowered his head and Cilan frowned, but then smiled. "Alright Emma! Get in your places and choose the Pokémon you want to battle with!"

'Places?' she thought in confusion, watching Cress as he walked around the arena and stepped up onto the raised circular platform. 'Oh...that must be what he meant. Awkward.' Shaking her head, she turned and looked at her Pokémon. Of course, in school, she was taught all the weakness of a Pokémon. And it's advantages. And Electricity is an advantage over Water.

She smiled and knelt down in front of Luxray, who sat up with pride. "Are you ready Luxray?" He nodded, a proud gleam in his eye that he was chosen to fight the very first Gym with his Trainer. No. She wasn't his Trainer. She was his friend and he was hers and he trusted her for that. And with that in mind, he wouldn't lose.

Cilan stood on the platform on the side of the arena, Pansage at his side. Chili stood near the wall with his Pokémon and Emma's Pokémon stood by him. "Ah? You pick Luxray as your partner? What a delightful pick!" Cress smiled. "You don't really see many of those around here."

It was strange seeing him so...well, calm, in the face of a Pokémon that could easily knock his out. "But I will warn you Emma. You may be at an advantage, but I will not hold back."

Emma tried to think of something to say, but what she thought of just sounded stupid. "I-I won't hold back either!" she managed to say after a minute of awkward silence. He seemed to be surprised by this but smiled. "Then we shall see who will be victorious."

"This battle is set up today in the Striaton Gym to be against Emma, the challenger, versus Cress, the Gym Leader!" Cilan announced, looking at them both. "Only one Pokémon each. When either side is unable to battle, the match is over!"

He looked at them both, seeing a nod that they were ready to battle, and he held a hand up. "And begin!"

"You may have the first move, Emma." Cress called, bowing slightly. She gave him an odd look but smiled. "Thank you. Luxray, use Tackle!" Luxray leapt off the rock he stood on and sprinted towards Panpour.

"Panpour, Double Team!" he ordered. Panpour smirked and cloned itself, making Luxray almost skid to a stop as they all jumped over him, stopping himself from hitting a rock, and quickly turned. "Use Roar!" Emma called.

He jumped onto a rock and let out the most menacing roar he could, sending all of them fleeing. The clones disintegrated but the real Panpour got over its fear and jumped up into the air. "Panpour, use Scratch!" he ordered.

Long sharp claws appeared out of the Spray Pokémon's paws and it fell towards him, claws out. "Quick Luxray! Get out of there!" Emma called. Her heart was racing and she couldn't stop herself from trembling.

Luxray turned and ran down the path, jumping from rock to rock in order to avoid its attack. The girl yelped and covered her mouth when she saw him get scratched all the way down his back, some fur flying off. "Luxray! Get Panpour low with Thunder Fang!"

Cress's eyes widened when Luxray twisted around just in time to bite down on his Pokémon's leg, not letting go. He saw the electricity pulse through his fur and flinched as Panpour was electrocuted. Cilan and Chili covered their eyes and watched in shock.

"Panpour!" the Spray Pokémon cried out.

"Panpour! Use Scratch again!"

The long claws appeared again and Luxray roared out in pain as he was scratched across the face, being blinded for the moment. "Now use Water Gun!" It jumped up into the air and arched back and then forward, sending the powerful jet of water towards him.

His eyes widened and he quickly dodged around it, still trying to fully open his stinging eyes. But Panpour wouldn't let him go that easy. It kept sending the jets of water at him, aiming high, then low, and then side to side. Luxray was fast.

"Alright, now try Double Team! And then hit Luxray with Water Gun!" the blue haired boy shouted. His heart was beating fast as well. This was just what he needed to lift his boredom.

"Luxray get out of there!" Emma cried. Fear was in her eyes and she almost felt like going in there and taking the blow herself. THIS was why she never battled. Out of fear for her Pokémon being injured. The Gleam Eyes Pokémon finally got his eyes open, only to see that he was surrounded by Panpours.

"Now! Water Gun!" Cress repeated.

They all arched back and then spit forth the powerful jet of water. "LUXRAY!" the girl screamed. The three looked at her in surprise. She was crying! She was actually crying! Chili and Cilan gave each other a confused glance.

The onslaught of water stopped and the clones disappeared and Panpour jumped back in front of Cress. "Luxray! Luxray please get up!" she shouted. He didn't. Cilan frowned and looked at Cress. "Luxray is unable to-"

Out the corner of his eye, he noticed Luxray was slowly getting to his feet. That made all of their jaws drop. "Luxray..." Emma whispered.

"But...how?!" Panpour questioned in surprise, backing up. He stood weakly on his paws and smirked._ "I promised my friend I wouldn't let her down."_ With the twitch of the tail, Emma knew that now was the time to finish this battle.

"Luxray! Use Spark and give it your all!"

His eyes widened when the Gleam Eyes Pokémon dugs his claws into the ground, seeing the electric sparks in his fur, and the dangerous look in his eyes. The sparks got bigger and bigger and he looked at his Panpour. "Panpour get out of there now!"

But it was too late. Panpour was frozen in fear as he sprinted towards him and in seconds, Luxray unleashed the stored electricity on it in the tackle. It cried out as it was electrocuted. The electricity shot up, illuminating everything. Their hair was blown back aggressively, Cress's eyes shut tightly, Emma looking away so nothing got in her eyes.

Luxray shot back and landed on a rock next to Emma, sparks showing up in his thick mane. "Panpour!" Cress shouted as his Pokémon fell to its knees and on its side, unable to battle any longer. Cilan shook his head in surprise and smiled. "Panpour is unable to battle! Emma and her Luxray win!"

That took her completely by surprise. "We won? We won!" Luxray turned and grunted when she hugged him tightly around the neck, kissing him repeatedly on the cheek. "Good job Luxray!" She let him go and Chili rushed up to the arena. "I want to battle! I want to battle! Just seeing that was so fiery and hot that I can't help but wanting to battle!"

She just stared at him and then at Luxray, who nodded. She smiled and pet his head. "Go and rest for a bit. You did a wonderful job." Panpour was engulfed in a red light and went back inside its Pokéball and the blue haired boy smiled. "You did a great job Panpour. You deserve this rest."

Lucario walked up to her and placed a paw on her shoulder. He nodded and she stood up. "Are you sure Lucario? You're weak to Fire-types." He smiled and shook his head. _"I'll be fine."_ Cress walked past Chili, who jumped onto the platform with anticipation, Pansear running out in front of him with equal excitement.

Lucario stood in front of Emma, right in the spot Luxray was in. "Since Cress wasn't so easy on you, I will! We don't want you to cry again, do we?" he teased slightly. She blushed dark pink and looked away in a huff.

"Are you both ready?" Cilan asked. They nodded and he smiled. "And begin!"

"Lady's first." Chili smiled and winked. Emma blushed even darker and Lucario growled. "Lucario, Rock Smash!" Lucario ran towards Pansear and his paw began to glow as he brought it back. Pansear jumped back and grunted as it was punched in the stomach, being launched back.

"Pansear, Fire Punch go!" Chili shouted.

Pansear's paw was surrounded by flames and Lucario jumped back. But it quickly followed. It lunged at him, bringing its paw back, and punched him in the chest near the spike, knocking him back. He grunted as he skidded across the ground and got up. "Lucario, hit him in the abdomen with Strength!" she ordered.

He ran towards it and got his fists ready. "Now use Flamethrower!" the red haired boy ordered. Their eyes widened and he arched back and just like Panpour, he spit forth a powerful blast of fire. He cried out in pain and tripped. "Lucario!"

"Now use Dig!"

The fire attack stopped and to their surprise, Pansear was gone! Lucario closed his eyes, the things in the back of his head rising up, and he could see nothing but the auras of everything around him. And coming up quickly below him was Pansear.

He quickly jumped up into the air right as it burst forth, trying to punch him, but missed, and turned in the air. "Lucario Bone Rush!" Emma ordered. A long glowing bone appeared in his paws and its eyes widened, crying out as it was smashed into its face. He repeatedly hit the High Temp Pokémon all over.

"Now, Aura Sphere!" she shouted.

The bone weapon disappeared and a large sphere formed in his hands and he threw it at it. "Pansear Dodge!" Pansear quickly got up and dodged just in time. "Now use Dig one more time!" It quickly dug into the ground and Lucario jumped back up in the air, another sphere forming in his hands.

Right as Pansear shot out of the ground, Chili shouted "Use Flamethrower!"

"Aura Sphere!"

They both shot their attacks at each other, the sphere keeping the fire at bay but it didn't last long for it exploded, smoke going everywhere, and Lucario opened his eyes, only to be met by fire. He grunted and smashed into a wall.

"Lucario!" Emma shouted in fright as he hit the floor. He winced as he stood up and brushed off the pain. "Lucario, Reversal and go all-out!" He quickly sprinted towards it, maneuvering around the rocks to try and confuse it, and brought his paws out.

Chili tensed up as Pansear was punched aggressively all over, mainly aimed in the gut. He jumped back, landing on a rock near the girl, and listened for the last order. "Pansear use Flamethrower!"

"Aura Sphere and don't hold back!"

In seconds, they sent their attacks at each other, the sphere Lucario made much larger this time. It exploded again and they looked away. "Flamethrower one last time!" the red haired boy shouted.

"Metal Claw let's go!" the girl commanded.

Pansear arched back and then sent the attack at him. "Lucario!" she shouted as the Aura Pokémon ran right into the flames. He lunged at the High Temp Pokémon and brought the metal claws up its torso, sending it backwards.

They stood still for a moment, watching to see if their Pokémon were good. Pansear struggled to get up and blacked out, unable to battle. Lucario winced and fell backwards, unable to battle as well.

"A draw?" Cress questioned in surprise.

"Pansear and Lucario are unable to battle. It's a draw this round." Emma rushed out to her Pokémon and perched him on her lap. "Lucario..." Pansear was sent back into its Pokéball and smiled. "Excellent. Take a nice rest."

He then hopped off the platform and walked up to her. "Here, let me help." Each having one of his arms around their shoulders, they stood up and walked up to Luxray, who was sleeping, and gently placed him next to him.

"Well, now that the both of us have battled, how about it Cilan?" Cress asked in amusement. Cilan looked at him and then placed a finger on his chin. "Gee, I guess I can battle. I mean, what's the harm of it?"

He then smiled and faced Emma. "Ready for the last battle Emma?" Emma stood up and narrowed her eyebrows, deep in thought. She didn't know if she was in a hurry or not but...she guess she could stay. For one last battle at least. "I guess I am..."

"Wonderful!"

He then walked up to the platform and Pansage ran out onto the arena. She looked at her Pokémon. Man, was she at a huge disadvantage. Except for Weavile! Weavile seemed to know that too for he nodded when she looked at him.

They walked out onto the battle arena and Cilan smiled. "I see, such a nice cold and crisp choice you made!" Cress stood on the platform on the side of the arena and smiled, holding a hand up. "And begin!"

"You have the first attack. From anywhere you'd like." he smiled. She was starting to wonder why she always got the first move. Maybe it was because she was a girl. Or maybe because this was her first ever Pokémon battle.

"Weavile use Quick Attack!" she ordered. Weavile quickly sprinted around each rock, getting closer and closer to Pansage.

"Pansage dodge it." Cilan smirked, looking away. Pansage quickly jumped out of the way of the attack and smirked. "Bullet Seed!" It spit out tons of seeds at Weavile, hitting him in the back of the head. When it stopped, he slowly glared at it over his shoulder, his teeth gritted.

"My my! Your Weavile needs to work on that nasty looking attitude! If he keeps it up, it'll spoil everything!"

"He doesn't have a temper!" she spat.

"My, it looks like YOU need to work on yours as well! Use Bite and don't let go!" Pansage nodded and lunged at him. Weavile snarled in pain as it bit down on his arm and he quickly stepped around, trying to throw it off.

"Use Fury Swipes!" Emma ordered. He scratched the Grass Monkey Pokémon across the face repeatedly and it finally let go, tears forming in its eyes from pain. "Now use Icy Wind!" Taking a deep breath, he breathed out freezing cold air.

Pansage squeaked in pain and immediately tried to get away from it. "Metal Claw and aim for the feet!" His claws glowed and he snarled as he lunged at it, racking at the ground. Pansage tripped, eyes wide with fright, and Emma pointed at it.

"Night Slash now!"

It cried out as it was slashed across the chest and hit the ground. Cilan smiled. "Such crisp flavors, almost like a special secret ingredient! But such flavors like that are impossible to beat me! Pansage let's show them how much the Sun is on our side!"

Their eyes widened when Pansage threw its arms up, the Sun's rays coming down on it making the tuft on its head sparkle and Weavile's jaw dropped when a sphere began to form in its paws. "Ah, it looks like this battle is over." Chili smirked.

"Pansage use Solar Beam now!" the green haired boy ordered, a confident look on his face. Bringing its arms behind its head, Pansage threw them out and sent the very bright beam at him. "Weavile!" Emma cried. "Stop it with Icy Wind!"

The Sharp Claw Pokémon took in a great big breath and breathed out harshly, the beam inches from him before freezing over. His eyes widened and Pansage cried out as it was knocked back by the ice and the wind.

It shattered and the ice chunks went everywhere. A wide smile spread across Cilan's face. "That was a brilliant way to defend from that attack!" Emma smiled and motioned at her Pokémon. "Weavile and I are strongest together."

"Well then we won't hold back then! Pansage use Bullet Seed!"

Pansage arched back and then spit out the seeds at a fast pace. Weavile just dodged around them. "Now Metal Claw!" she shouted. He jumped into the air, his claws ready to strike. "Use Bullet Seed once more!" he ordered.

His Pokémon obeyed and he flinched as they zoomed towards him and cried out as he was hit in the chest. He hit the ground with a thud and winced. "Weavile get up!" Weavile slowly stood up and grunted as he was hit yet again by more seeds.

"Weavile!"

"Alright, let's begin. The time for the battle to be served is here!"

Emma looked at him in confusion, her body screaming for her to go out and see if he was okay. She was too afraid to say anything. And she had no idea what he was talking about. He placed a finger up to his lips and smiled. "Well now, it seems that you and Weavile aren't as well tended to as I thought you were. Even for the first battle, it has no spice and it leaves a very bland flavor and aftertaste. What a letdown."

"A letdown!?" she questioned in annoyance. "This is my first time!"

"Even still! Your Weavile is too wild. Now, Pansage on the other hand, its attacks give off the fragrance of a freshly mowed lawn! It's practically the STAR of the battlefield! Dare I say it, Pansage is the most brilliant battler ever!"

"Hey! Weavile is far more experienced than Pansage will ever be!"

"Now now, don't sound so desperate! The battle was already spoiled by both of your sour attitudes!"

She growled in anger. Man did she want to punch this guy. "Weavile use Icy Wind!" Weavile nodded and breathed in and blew out the freezing air. Pansage flinched and tried to get out of it but it simply couldn't. "And now use Night Slash!"

"Pansage use Bite!"

They quickly ran towards each other and in the blink of an eye, they were past each other. Weavile stood unharmed by this attack and Pansage became dizzy and passed out, unable to battle. Cilan's eyes grew wide with surprise.

"Pansage is unable to battle, Emma and Weavile win!" Cress announced. Weavile turned and ran up to her and she pulled him into a tight hug but he didn't mind. "You did amazing Weavile!"

Cilan returned his Pokémon to its Pokéball and he smiled. "Well then! I guess I spoke too soon!" She stood up and the three walked up to her. "As proof for beating the Striaton Gym, please take the Trio Badge!" all three of them said at once, each holding a small square container that had the Trio Badge on it.

They then stared at each other. "I think it's only fair that I give it to her." Chili growled. Cress snorted and closed his eyes. "Please tell me you're joking. I WAS the Gym Leader she chose to battle so I should be the one who gives her it."

"Yes but I was the one who brought out the zest of her Pokémon!" Cilan smiled. Emma glanced at all three of them as they glared at each other and right as she was about to say something, the wall that opened to the battle arena exploded, causing her to scream and quickly look at it, as they were startled as well.

They watched two figures walk through the smoke and her eyes widened when she saw that it was Alex and Darkrai. "Oh no..."

"Emma! There you are my dear." Alex greeted, pistol in hand.

"Hey who're you?!" Chili demanded.

"What gives you the right to come busting into this room like that!?" Cress questioned.

"The name's Alexander Cross and I've come here for the girl." Alex replied and pointed at her. Emma swallowed hard and backed up. Chili stood in front of her and clutched his Pokéball tightly. "You'll pay for busting in like that. Let's go Pansear!"

She stared in surprise. 'But Pansear's injured!' Pansear popped out of the brightness and he pointed at the man. "Pansear use Flamethrower!" Pansear jumped up and arched back and then forward, sending out the stream of fire.

Alex held up the pistol and pulled the trigger. In a split second, Pansear let out a piercing shriek of pain as the bullet shot through its left arm. "PANSEAR!" he screamed and ran up to it, catching it in his arms.

Blood leaked out of the bullet wound and it whimpered loudly. "Who do you think you are!?" He yelped when the wall behind him suddenly cracked and a few strands of hair fell off. "Damn. Next time I won't fucking miss." he growled and glared at them.

The three brothers quickly cowered away from Emma, Pansear still in Chili's grasp. "Come here Emma." he cooed softly, pistol pointed at her. Zoroark growled and Darkrai floated up to them, making sure they did nothing stupid.

He cocked the gun and she jumped. "Be a good girl and come here." She shuddered slightly and hesitantly began to walk towards him. He held his hand out and she hesitantly grabbed it and she grunted as she was pulled close to him. "Ah Emma. What a little pain you are."

She tensed up when he slowly leaned down and she screamed, kneeing him in the lower region. He tensed up and let her go, holding the throbbing area while he fell to his knees. "Y-you bitch!" She quickly sprinted through the destroyed wall and Darkrai grunted as he was sent back by Zoroark.

Zoroark quickly followed after Emma, running on all fours so that he was faster. "Darkrai! Follow after the bitch damn it!" Alex ordered, getting to his feet. Darkrai rolled his eyes in annoyance but did as he was told, quickly flying after her with Alex quickly following close behind.

* * *

Emma yelped as she was pulled into an alley and squirmed in the figure's grasp. _"Emma calm down! It's just me!"_ Zoroark whispered and made her face him. Her eyes widened when she saw him and smiled, hugging him. "Oh Zoroark! Thank goodness it's you."

_"Emma I have a plan!"_

He stepped back and jumped backwards, being surrounded by a pinkish glow, and was replaced by HERSELF! He then pointed at himself and then at her. Her eyes widened and she grinned. "That's a brilliant idea Zoroark! I'll meet you back at the Striaton Gym. Please don't get hurt."

_"I won't."_ he whispered and pressed his forehead against hers and ran out into the open, running to the right.

"Don't let her get away!" she heard Alex shout, jumping when Darkrai zoomed past the entrance to the alley, and then followed by Alex shortly after.

**Later that day...**

Emma silently walked up to the Striaton Gym. Zoroark silently waited by the door and he looked at her, smiling. "We should get going soon. We have such a long ways to go." He nodded and opened the door for her. The building had been evacuated and closed for repairs.

But only her bag and Pokémon remained. 'Thank goodness Alex didn't hurt them.' she thought and smiled. "Alright guys, we gotta go now."

"Emma? Back this late?" Cilan asked, making her jump and face him. The three stood there, Pansear in Chili's arms protectively. "Yeah. I'm sorry about this whole thing. We'll be leaving."

"Not without your Gym Badge you won't!"

She gave him a confused look and Cress walked up to her. Grabbing her hand gently in his, he set the gold badge into her hand. "We didn't give you the Trio Badge before when you won. It was childish of us to fight over it."

"But it was a true honor battling with you." Cilan smiled. Chili nodded in agreement and smirked.

"Take care of yourself Emma."

"You too." Emma motioned for the others to follow and the three watched as they walked out the front doors and they closed after.

* * *

After visiting a Pokémon Center to let her Pokémon rest, they were out on the road again. Well, a dirt road to be precise. It was much colder out in the afternoon. She couldn't imagine how cold it was going to get at night.

Umbreon's ear twitched and he stopped, listening close. The others seemed to have heard it too. _"What was that?"_ Weavile questioned.

_"A cry it sounded like."_ Absol replied.

Emma looked around and looked at the others. "Stay here." They watched her run into the woods that surrounded them and sighed.

* * *

Emma turned around a tree and stopped when she saw a Purrloin struggling to break free from a bear trap. There was a medium sized blood pool under it from a long time of struggle and she quickly kneeled down, making it hiss at her. "Don't worry! I'm gonna get you out of there!"

The sound of a gun being cocked made her freeze and slowly look up, her eyes widening in fright as Alex stood there, pointing his pistol in her face. "Hello Emma."


	5. Chapter 5

"Y-you?! B-but I...!" Emma stuttered in fright. Alex pursed his lips slightly and smirked slyly. "Aw, did you think that your stupid Zoroark could fool me?" He chuckled and pointed the pistol at the Purrloin, pulling the trigger.

She jumped when the Purrloin was shot in the head, blood flying everywhere, some splattering on her face. Her eyes grew wide and she began to tremble, almost on the verge of screaming her head off. It fell lifelessly to the ground and he then pointed it at her. "Now Emma, am I going to have to shoot you too? Or are you going to cooperate?"

He noticed the tears streaming down her cheeks and he frowned, kneeling down. "Aw now don't cry Emma. I don't need you looking so vulnerable just yet." She pulled her head away when he reached to cup her face and he raised his upper lip, standing up. "Darkrai, put her to sleep and don't let her wake up until we get back."

Emma froze in her spot as she felt something rise up from the ground a few inches behind her and slowly turned her head. Darkrai stared her down, his eye glowing brightly in the slight darkness. He slowly raised his hands in the air, a dark sphere forming in his hands.

Emma backed up slowly in fright and screamed at the tops of her lungs when he brought it down. He grunted as his attack was deflected by another and let out a cry of pain as he was scratched deeply down the back.

Alex grunted as he was tackled to the ground, the pistol flying out of his hand, and turned, seeing that the attacker, well, attackers, were Liepards and Purrloins. A Liepard ran up to her and bit down on her dress, quickly getting her to her feet, and dragged her away. "But the others!" she objected.

The others quickly followed behind and Alex quickly stood up. "DAMN IT DARKRAI! YOU TOOK TOO FUCKING LONG!" Darkrai grunted as he was hit across the face and had the pistol held against his head. "If you fucking do it again next time, I'm going to blow your fucking brains out. Do you hear me?!"

* * *

The girl silently followed the pack of Liepards and Purrloins through the woods, the moon now out. She noticed a large cave in front of them and slowed down a little in fright. Only to have the Liepard behind her growl at her, making her speed up.

They stopped near the cave and they stared at her. "Look guys, thank you for getting me out of there but I-"

_"Emma?"_ Lucario questioned, getting her attention. Her Pokémon were okay! 'Thank goodness!' she thought and smile, running up to him. She pulled him into a hug and kissed his cheek. "I thought you guys were left behind."

_"No, some of them brought us here."_ he murmured and smiled. A Liepard walked up to them, switching its gaze from him to her. "Lie. Liepard." it purred, its tail twitching. She just stared at it, the others filing into the cave past them.

She squeaked when it gently bit down on her hand and with a slight tug, pulled her into the cave. "W-what's going on?" she asked.

_"They want us to stay for the night and will take us to our destination in the morning."_ he replied and walked up to the others. Her other Pokémon were curled up, fast asleep. Her hand was let go and she looked at the Liepard in confusion.

It motioned to the giant crowd of curled up Purrloin and Liepard and she fidgeted. "I-I don't know...isn't it rude to-"

"Liepard." it growled, its eyes narrowing. She tensed up and slowly sat down against the rocky wall. It sat down and curled up into a ball close to her side. She then just realized how cold it was, compared to the soothing warmth of the Pokémon.

She flinched even more when she was suddenly surrounded by curled up Purrloins and Liepards. Looking around, she spotted Zoroark staring at her and he simply nodded, telling her that it was alright. She hesitantly nodded back and got comfortable, almost, and closed her eyes.

And from the gentle rising and falling of the surrounding Pokémon from their breathing and the nice body heat, she fell asleep.

* * *

Emma's eyes slowly opened and she groaned, having had a nice sleep, and sat up slowly. _"Good morning."_ Absol murmured and walked up to her, holding a Pecha Berry in his jaws gently. He dropped it in her lap and she glanced at him and smiled. "Thanks Absol."

She wiped it clean so that there was no spit on it or dirt and when it was to her standards, she took a small bite. This particular Pecha Berry was full of juice and she smiled, closing her eyes, enjoying the rich flavor it produced.

He then turned and walked up to the opening of the cave, grabbing her bag with his teeth, and walked back towards her. He nuzzled the spot where berries were kept and she gave him a confused look, opening it up. It was stock full of berries!

_"We went out and got some for the road."_ he explained and stared at her. She smiled and stroked his cheek with her fingers. "Aw, thank you Absol."

_"Pfft. What am I? Chopped liver?"_ Zoroark greeted.

"Oh! Good morning Zoroark." she smiled and stood up. He walked up to her as she pulled the bag's strap around her shoulder and he looked back at the entrance. _"We must be going now. The head Liepard is only taking us as far as the border to Nacrene City."_

She flinched when a loud hiss echoed through the cave and looked around him, seeing that it was the Liepard that led her into the cave last night. _"Now, we must go."_ Absol informed and walked towards it, turning back to look at her.

She and Zoroark followed after him. The sun shown brightly through the clouds and Emma covered her eyes, continuing to chew on the Pecha Berry. She would have to eat faster so that the juice didn't stick to her hands from the heat.

The other Purrloins and Liepards sat around the cave, just watching as they left the cave. Weavile looked up at the sky and then smirked._ "I wonder what Nacrene City's like."_

_"Probably bustling with people and Pokémon just like Striaton City."_ Luxray replied and closed his eyes as sun shown in them. There wasn't a strong wind out and that kind of bugged Cofagrigus. The others seemed to be a little tense with the rising heat.

It was silent in the group and Emma looked around. She hadn't seen the road ever since she woke up. Was this Liepard sure it knew where Nacrene City was? Maybe this was just a different route. Maybe it was leading them somewhere else.

She became a little concerned about the option of ever going with these Liepards and Purrloins. They WERE tricky Pokémon. Zoroark looked around and growled, looking at the Liepard._ "Where are we heading?"_

_"The back way to Nacrene City."_ it replied._ "I know shortcuts by heart."_

The others seemed to almost relax at this news and it remained silent on the trip.

* * *

_"Here we are. Nacrene City."_ Liepard informed, stopping at the road, and looked at them. _"Goodbye."_ They watched it stalk back into the woods and Emma smiled. "Thank goodness it actually took us to Nacrene City and not somewhere else. C'mon. Let's go look around!"

They nodded in agreement and followed after her. It was such a pretty city! The buildings had artwork on it, everything so colorful. It was very beautiful. She smiled to herself and looked at her Pokémon. "How about we try to find the Gym."

They nodded in agreement and she looked at each building carefully. Luxray looked at each building carefully as well until his gaze fell upon the museum. _"There it is."_ he murmured and looked at her, brushing his tail along her arm.

She looked at him and with the motion of his head, she looked at the museum. "A museum? Man, Gym Leaders sure do know how to make their gyms hard to find."

_"Well, it does say it on the sign as well."_ Absol murmured.

They walked up to the door and opened it, walking inside. Not a lot of people where in the building and there was an odd silence in the air. She heard footsteps and turned to see a man in his twenties to early thirties walking towards her. He adjusted his glasses and smiled. "Hello! Welcome to the Nacrene Museum!"

"Um...hi." she greeted. "Um...I'm just passing through and noticed that this was the Gym."

"You bet it is! My wife Lenora is the Gym Leader. But I'm afraid to say that she's kind of busy today."

"Oh? Um, okay then. Should I come back some other time then?"

"Well you don't have to go!" he informed and smiled. "I could show you around the museum and then maybe talk to her." She gave him a surprised look but then smiled. "That would be nice. Thank you!"

"Then follow me!" He turned and walked away. She followed close behind, along with her Pokémon. "Oh! I never told you my name and what I do here in the Nacrene Museum! Sorry! Well, my name's Hawes and I'm the assistant director!"

"Emma." she smiled and shook his hand when he held it out. The others stayed quiet as they began the tour of the museum. Zoroark again, got that strange feeling of being watched and looked over his shoulder slightly, his eyes widening when he saw a glimpse of Darkrai's shadow quickly zooming across the wall.

They stopped when they heard growling and turned, seeing that he was growling at nothing in particular. "Is your Zoroark okay?" Hawes asked. She shrugged. "I'm not sure. Zoroark, are you okay?"

_"No. This is a bad time to be here. We must leave now!"_ he replied and turned, walking up to her, and grabbed her arm, quickly walking away. "Hey! Zoroark let go!" she demanded and yanked her arm away. "What's gotten into you all of a sudden?"

* * *

"So, where is she Darkrai?" Alex asked, standing in an alley with two other Team Darkness Grunts. Darkrai rose up from the ground, his white hair blowing slightly. "In the Nacrene Museum." He didn't want to tell him the location but he knew he had to. Death threats were very common with Alex and boy did he not hesitate to kill his own Pokémon. Ones that he deemed useless, that is.

He was just lucky to be alive still. But anything else was better than staying with Alex.

"Perfect. You finally did something right this time." he grinned. He rolled his eyes in annoyance. Boy did he hate this human. But there was something about Emma that intrigued him. The day Arceus was saved by her was the day he would not stop talking about her. He told practically every Legendary Pokémon about her in the Hall of Origin. Of course, he wasn't there.

Some of the Legendaries didn't really care. The rest were rather eager to meet her one day. Like Mesprit. He didn't know why Mesprit was so excited to meet her. Then again, ALL of the small Legendaries wanted to meet her. Not really much from Azelf and Uxie. There was a lot of commotion from Victini though.

Something about her showed promise. He didn't know why though. Maybe it was the fact that she met Arceus or the fact that he gave her some of his life plates for her journey. Oh yes. He knew that the jewel around her neck was indeed his life plates. But why was it called the Jewel of Hope? It was such a misleading name!

What was so hopeful about it?

He knew the power it contained. Power that she couldn't harness. The only reason why she was protected from the bullets Alex shot at her was because Arceus was protecting her. How pathetic. Humans were not to be trusted.

But maybe Emma was. He didn't know anymore. His mind was all scrambled from all the years of seeing such violence from Alex.

'Emma...you have no idea what you're getting yourself into.' Darkrai thought to himself as Alex walked past him, along with the two Team Darkness grunts, and closed his eyes. 'Many of the Legendaries are waiting for you to see if you truly are what Arceus says.'

* * *

"And we'll conclude the tour in the Ancient exhibit." Hawes announced slightly. Emma smiled and looked around. The tour was definitely interesting to say the least. And she learned a few new things too.

Cofagrigus looked around, seeing nothing of interest, until his eyes glossed over something very familiar. A Yamask mask. He just stood there, staring at it, so many...bad memories coming back from when he was a human and when he was a Yamask.

The girl noticed him out the corner of her eye and trailed his stare all the way to the mask and frowned, walking up to him. He flinched when she placed a hand on his side and faced her. She smiled and looked away. "C'mon Cofagrigus. There's plenty of cool stuff to see!"

He sensed that she was trying to get him away from the mask and he was glad she was trying. He didn't like his memories. They would always stay with him. But when he evolved, they were just pushed farther back into his mind, not really having them there all the time.

"Hey Hawes, what's up with the...the Yamask mask?" she whispered, motioning to Cofagrigus with her head. Hawes caught on and smiled. "Well, we ordered a Yamask mask replica for the display but I accidently forgot about a Cofagrigus replica. We'll be expecting it along with other things tonight." he whispered back.

She nodded walked up to it. She remembered when he was a Yamask. And she remembered when she first got him. Oh, he was just the cutest thing she ever saw. Both he and Zorua got along after the first day and remained loyal friends.

_"Emma! Sweetheart! I got you something!" Emma's father called. A five year old Emma and Zorua came bounding down the stairs and stopped at his feet. "What'd you get daddy?" she asked. He chuckled and covered her eyes with his hand. "Hold your hands out sweetheart. And be careful with it."_

_Zorua watched as Emma's mother handed him an Egg and place it into her tiny hands, tilting his head to the side. "Now, open your eyes!" he smiled, pulling his hand away. Emma opened her eyes and squealed in excitement when her eyes fell upon the Egg. "Another Egg! Thank you daddy!" She jumped up to hug him but he stopped her. "Be careful Emma! Eggs are fragile." She nodded and he bent down, scooping her up in his arms and kissed her neck playfully, making her laugh and kick her legs._

_After dinner, Emma went back to her room with Zorua and the Egg, leaving her parents in the living room, watching a movie. "So Adam, how'd you get home without it hatching?" she asked. Adam looked at her and then back at the TV. "I just got it at work and my coworker told me it was a new Egg. So the trip home wasn't hard. But I did begin to hear noises as I got through the door."_

_"Yeah. I heard them too." she murmured and smiled, resting her head against his shoulder. "You're such a great father."_

_"I know." he smiled and rested his head against hers. They jumped when a scream interrupted the moment and quickly stood up. "Emma?!" They quickly ran up the stairs and burst into Emma's room but quickly stopped at what they saw._

_Emma and Zorua watched in surprise as the Egg cracked all over. Some chipped off and she grinned ear to ear, fidgeting around in excitement. And in a split second, the Egg shattered completely, except for the bottom. And what was inside confused them._

_A gold mask! It looked like a boy in his teen years. Emma grinned when she saw the black fuzzy mass slowly move around. His tail slowly uncurled, flexing, and rested against the ground. She bit her lip to suppress a squeal when she saw his eyes slowly open._

_They were red and such a pretty red too. He opened his small mouth to take in a breath and her own breath hitched when he slowly rose up from the broken Egg, his tail taking the mask. "Yamask." he yawned._

_"A Yamask?" Adam questioned._

_Emma reached out and grabbed it gently in her hands and grinned. "Oh! You're so cute!" Yamask just stared at the fuzzy blob in front of him, his eyes still trying to accustom to the open. But he was glad he was being held by something warm. "Ya..."_

_She gently cradled him close to her chest and smiled. Emma's mother smiled and gave her husband a gentle tug. "Let's let them get acquainted." Adam nodded and they left the room silently, closing the door behind them._

_Zorua stared at them and lowered his ears, feeling a little left out as she cuddled up to the newborn Pokémon._

They all jumped when they heard a gun shot and Emma immediately tensed up, quickly turning to see what was going on. Alex couldn't have followed them! "W-what the!?" Hawes questioned. "Stay here!"

"Wait don't!" she shouted as he ran away to see what was going on. She looked at her Pokémon, as they looked at her, and she shooed them off. "Hide guys!" They nodded in agreement and quickly but quietly scrambled out of the room in different directions.

Cofagrigus ran up to the ruined temple display and laid down. "Where's Emma?!" they heard Alex shout.

* * *

"I-I don't know! I-I'm just the assistant director!" Hawes yelped, almost on the verge of passing out in fright. Alex gritted his teeth in annoyance, pointing the pistol in his face.

"What's going on here!?" Lenora demanded, walking into the room. She jumped when the two Darkness Grunts pulled a gun on her and she tensed up, staying perfectly still with her hands by her head.

"I'm NOT the one who enjoys fucking games like this! I want to know where the hell Emma Gold is!" the man spat, ferocity in his eyes.

She just stayed calm while Hawes was trembling like a lunatic. "I don't know any "Emma Gold". I've been busy ordering replicas for some exhibits that are missing some." He gritted his teeth and stomped up to her. "Stop fuckin' lying to me bitch! Take me around here. NOW!"

The woman showed no signs of fear and she looked at Hawes, gave him a warning glare, and turned. "Follow me then." She walked away and one grunt shoved Hawes forward. "You too." she commanded.

He quickly walked up to his wife for safety. "What did you DO Hawes?!" Lenora whispered.

"I don't know this time! Really!" he whispered back.

* * *

'No no NO!' Emma thought in horror, backing up.

_"Emma!"_ Cofagrigus whisper shouted. She looked at him to see him open up, motioning for her to hide inside of him. She gulped and silently ran up to him, making sure she was light on her feet. Thank goodness Weavile took her bag so if she hid, it wouldn't cause any noise for her.

"Forgive me." she whispered before laying down inside of him, the gold cold to her exposed skin. The top immediately closed after that, the light soon becoming complete darkness. Emma's heart beat faster and faster as she listened to the footsteps, along with breaking sounds and cries of anger and annoyance.

She flinched when she felt something strange against her feet and looked down. 'Oh crap!' Cofagrigus thought. He knew exactly what was going on. Even though he hadn't eaten anyone before, it's known that whoever's eaten by a Cofagrigus is turned into a mummy.

Even if they were still alive somehow.

"Cofagrigus stop that!" the girl pleaded as quietly as she could. But he couldn't help himself. It had to be done. As a way to protect her. Of course, the gauze would squeeze hard enough so that her talking would be silenced. _"I'm sorry Emma."_ he whispered.

Emma squirmed around inside the Coffin Pokémon, the gauze now covering her lower legs and wrapping around her even faster as the footsteps got closer to the room they were in. Her breathing became erratic as her lower body was wrapped tightly in the gauze, unable to move them.

'No please!' she thought in fright. The Jewel of Hope glowed brightly and she quickly covered it to stop it from giving her away, placing her other arm bent above the other as the gauze quickly wrapped up her torso and arms.

"If she's not in this fucking room them I'm blowing this damned place up." Alex growled, really wanting to shoot something. Hawes's eyes widened when they walked into the room, seeing that the girl he escorted around was gone and that there was a Cofagrigus lying on the ruined temple display.

Even Lenora was a little stunned. They didn't have a Cofagrigus replica! Only a Yamask mask. "Where did THAT come from?" she whispered to her husband.

Emma closed her eyes tightly as her whimpers were silenced completely, unable to move her entire body now, and closed her eyes tightly as she felt the gauze wrap around her eyes, blinding her completely for now.

Alex stared at the Cofagrigus and smirked, narrowing his eyes. "Come out come out wherever you are Emma! You can't hide from me forever!" The two Team Darkness Grunts walked up to the closed off artifacts and smashed the glass with their guns, throwing the items around.

The two stayed silent so they didn't get hurt.

Alex advanced slowly towards the coffin, grinning wickedly. Cofagrigus stayed still on instinct as he grabbed his side and flung the top open, shouting: "Found you-"

His grin disappeared when he saw that it was just a fake mummy lying there. Lenora and Hawes sighed quietly in relief. "What the...WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS BULLSHIT!?"

He grabbed the mummy's neck and pulled her up. Emma bit the inside of her lip, paralyzed. She knew she was face to face with him, even though her eyes were closed. But she could smell his breath. Gritting his teeth, Alex threw her aside, anger in his eyes.

She winced as she hit the ground, suppressing any sound so she didn't get caught. "I-I don't know if this'll help b-but a girl left the museum out the back door!" Hawes piped out hesitantly. They looked at him in surprise and Alex stormed up to him, griping his arm tightly in his grasp. "Where!?"

"Just follow that hallway and take a left. Go down that hallway and to the right, there's an emergency exit." Lenora added. "It's the fastest way to the woods." The man looked at them both and pointed the pistol at Cofagrigus and pulled the trigger.

Cofagrigus gritted his teeth in pain as the bullet shot through his foot, almost letting his face show, but he kept his composure.

They watched the three storm away and after a few minutes, Lenora slowly looked at her husband. "So Hawes, who's Emma?" They flinched when Cofagrigus let out a cry of pain, letting his face show finally, and his hands appeared, reaching down to the wound.

Emma's Pokémon silently ran back into the room and Luxray ran up to the mummy, scratching the gauze open. He pulled the rest off with his teeth and Emma sat up quickly, taking a deep breath, coughing. "Cofagrigus!" she shouted and ran up to him.

_"I-I'll be fine."_ he grunted, gently brushing her off.

She then faced them and placed her hand on her face. "I'm SO SORRY about this! I didn't think he'd follow me!" The two looked at each other and walked up to her. "Are you the Emma that guy was looking for?" Lenora questioned.

She nodded slowly, tears forming in her eyes. "I-I just came here for a battle and all of a sudden, this happened! I'm sorry!" She frowned and knelt down, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Hey, don't cry Emma. You're alright now. He's gone!"

Hawes reached into his pocket and pulled out a handkerchief, handing it to her. She took it and nodded her thanks, wiping her eyes with it. "Why don't we make a deal." the woman murmured, getting her attention. "If you help us clean up, I'll battle you."

She nodded and she stood up. "We'll be right back." The girl watched the two walk away and she quickly turned. "Cofagrigus I'm so sorry!" She placed a hand near the wound and they watched in surprise as the Jewel of Hope began to glow brightly, a sparkling essence coming out of it.

It trailed around her arm and spread out across the wound. And to all of their surprise, his wound began to heal!

After a few seconds, it was fully healed and she looked at the jewel. "Was that...the Pixie Plate?"

"Alright Emma," Lenora murmured, making her jump and face them. She held two brooms, each having a dustpan on them. "Let's get started."

**About the Legendary Pokémon meeting Emma, that was a spoiler. But don't rustle your jimmies over it! :3**


End file.
